Jack Dorsey has spent the better part of a decade telling anyone who’ll listen that Bitcoin is the native currency of the internet. Through Block Inc., the company formerly known as Square, Dorsey is pushing Bitcoin into payments, savings, and daily financial life through a web of subsidiaries and hardware projects.
Block has assembled a portfolio of Bitcoin-focused subsidiaries, each targeting a different piece of the adoption puzzle. Cash App, which has supported Bitcoin purchases since 2014, serves as the consumer-facing gateway. Bitkey handles self-custody hardware wallets. Proto tackles Bitcoin mining. And Spiral funds open-source Bitcoin development.
The scale of Block’s existing payments business gives this strategy some teeth. The company processes $241B in annual payments, which means it already has merchant relationships and consumer trust in place.
Block also holds 8,000 BTC on its balance sheet, purchased between 2020 and 2021 for approximately $170M.
Hardware and the 3nm mining chip
In April 2024, the company revealed a 3nm mining chip developed through its Proto subsidiary. By designing its own silicon, Block is attempting to decentralize the mining supply chain itself. A 3nm process node is cutting-edge by any standard — the same manufacturing technology Apple uses in its latest iPhone chips.
Bitkey, Block’s self-custody wallet, pairs with a mobile app and uses a distributed key model, splitting signing authority between the hardware, the phone, and Block’s servers.
Reviving the Bitcoin faucet
Block has announced a Bitcoin faucet revival for a May 11, 2026 launch. The original faucet, built by Gavin Andresen, distributed roughly 19,700 BTC over its lifetime — a stash worth well over $2B at today’s prices.
Alongside the faucet, Block has established a $5M grant program targeting nonprofit organizations focused on Bitcoin education. The grants are distributed through Spiral, Block’s open-source development arm.
What this means for investors
Miles Suter, who leads Bitcoin initiatives at Block, has framed the company’s approach around necessity rather than speculation, emphasizing Bitcoin as global financial infrastructure, particularly for payments.
Block’s $241B in annual payment volume gives it distribution advantages that pure-play Bitcoin companies can’t match. Block’s Bitcoin-first strategy represents a meaningful divergence from other fintech companies — PayPal and Venmo let you buy Bitcoin, but neither is designing mining chips or funding open-source protocol development.
