Swedish fintech company Klarna has filed its initial public offering (IPO) prospectus and plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol KLAR. The move is seen as a significant blow to European stock exchanges, which have struggled to retain homegrown tech companies like Klarna.
Klarna’s CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski had previously hinted at going public in the US due to better visibility and regulatory advantages. The company has been rebuilding after a dramatic downturn in 2022, when its valuation was slashed by 85% from $46 billion to $6.7 billion.
Despite this, analysts now estimate Klarna’s valuation in the $15 billion range, bolstered by its return to profitability in 2023. Revenue increased 24% to $2.8 billion last year, with adjusted operating profit of $181 million.
Klarna competes with Affirm and Afterpay, both owned by Block and PayPal respectively. The company aims to expand its financial offerings, including debit, lending, and payment services, to capture more consumer attention and spending. However, it faces competition from traditional credit card networks like Visa and Mastercard, as well as digital-focused banks like Revolut.
Klarna operates as a fully licensed bank in Europe since 2017 and plans to obtain licenses in the US, where it currently partners with WebBank. The company is willing to invest $1 billion in this effort to offer small-dollar consumer loans directly, aiming to reduce credit card fees that American consumers are used to paying.
The IPO filing comes amid market volatility, with the Nasdaq experiencing its fourth straight week of losses. Consumer confidence has also suffered due to ongoing tariff-related uncertainty, with data from the University of Michigan showing a decline in March to 57.9.
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/03/14/buy-now-pay-later-lender-klarna-files-for-us-ipo.html