Block Q2: Lending Engine Keeps Humming, Crypto Cools - And Shopify Capital Is Gaining Ground
- Staff Writer
- Aug 9
- 2 min read
Block’s latest quarter was a reminder that embedded lending is no side hustle anymore. While top‑line headlines fixated on guidance and mixed revenue trends, two things stood out for our world: Square Loans kept scaling originations, and Bitcoin revenue cooled from last year’s pace. Meanwhile, Shopify Capital posted a sizable quarter of its own, a competitive signal for platform‑native business funding.
Square Loans: High‑volume, low‑friction funding
Block’s merchant lending arm originated about $1.64 billion in small‑business loans in Q2, a touch above Q1’s pace. The model remains classic embedded finance: offers driven by seller data, with automated repayment as a slice of daily POS receipts. The result is underwriting that’s continuous, repayment that’s programmatic, and throughput that reliably scales.
Bitcoin: Downshift from 2024’s pace
On the crypto side, Block’s Bitcoin revenue fell to about $2.14 billion, down from $2.61 billion a year ago. That won’t surprise anyone tracking softer trading and wallet velocity into the summer, but it does underscore why Block keeps diversifying toward banking and credit stickiness inside Cash App and seller ecosystems.
Shopify Capital
Shopify’s Q2 print included a strong showing from Shopify Capital, which purchased about $1.0 billion in business loans and MCAs in the quarter and $1.8 billion in the first half, helped by expansion into new geographies. That level puts Shopify on a run‑rate that’s smaller than Square’s, but meaningfully competitive, especially given Shopify’s deep integration into merchant storefront operations.
What it means for lenders and platforms
Platform underwriting is the moat. Square Loans and Shopify Capital both lean on real‑time commerce telemetry. That’s why offer timing, size, and repayment fit better than generic credit pulls, and why uptake stays high.
Distribution > demand gen. When funding is embedded where merchants already work (invoices, checkout, payouts), conversion beats traditional outreach every time.
Crypto won’t carry the quarter. With Bitcoin revenue normalizing, platform credit and banking become the growth stabilizers, precisely where Square Loans and Cash App’s lending roadmap matters most.
Quick compare: Square Loans vs. Shopify Capital (Q2 2025)
Square Loans (Block): ~$1.64B originations; automated repayment from daily sales; data‑driven eligibility sourced from seller processing history.
Shopify Capital: ~$1.0B in purchased loans/MCAs; H1 at $1.8B; amplified by geographic expansion and deep storefront integration.
Bottom line
Square Loans remains the volume leader in platform-native SMB funding, but Shopify Capital is a credible second engine in the embedded lending race.
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