Bloomberg News Square has come a long way since it debuted in 2009 with a simple plastic card reader for micro-merchants But it didnt make its journey alone Square has made several key partnerships acquisitions and more as it sought to not only build the mobile point of sale market but also diversify to defend against the onslaught of competitors Its a much different company today even if its tiny mobile card reader doesnt look much different The company has steadily swallowed up new technology to fundamentally change what merchants can do once they get onto Squares platform This listicle is compiled from reporting by PaymentsSource writers including John Adams Kate Fitzgerald and David Heun Click the links in each item to read more