Fintech Klarna filed for IPO in the US
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Klarna has begun its long-awaited stock market flotation after the Swedish buy now, pay later pioneer said it had filed for an initial public offering in the US.
The fintech said Wednesday that it has “confidentially submitted” its draft registration to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
An initial public offering, which could be valuable Klarna Between $15 billion and $20 billion, the company added, will follow SEC review and timing will depend on market conditions. Klarna said the price and number of shares offered in the IPO have not yet been determined.
Klarna has been on a rollercoaster ride since it was valued at $46 billion in a 2021 deal, making it Europe’s most valuable startup. It was then valued at $6.7 billion in time Final official fundraising round in 2022, as investors sharply reassess fintech companies in response to rising interest rates.
It has also suffered one Deep governance rift between the two co-founders – chief executive Sebastian Siemiatkowski and third-largest shareholder Victor Jacobsson – culminated last month when their representatives were removed from Klarna’s board.
The dispute exposed tensions over Jacobsson and his allies’ use of special purpose vehicles to buy the company’s shares on the secondary market and protest against the company’s leadership.
Siematkowski told the Financial Times more than a year ago, the company was ready to IPO when market conditions allowed. Although expected by many, Klarna’s choice of the US as the IPO location is a blow to European capital markets and follows compatriot Spotify’s similar decision to choose New York to list in 2018.
the financial technology has focused heavily on expanding into the United States in recent years, which has impacted the company’s bottom line. It has bolstered its partnerships with US traders as it tries to buy now, pay later for rival Affirm and has reached a deal to transfer its £30bn lending to hedge fund Elliott to consolidate your capital.
Klarna has narrowed its losses over the past year and appears to be on track to return to annual profits. Siemiatkowski has touted the benefits of using artificial intelligence to cut costs, pledging to nearly halve its workforce by using AI for customer service and marketing. He also implemented a suspension of recruitment of workers other than engineers.
Klarna’s IPO will likely make the buy now pay later area controversial. Siemiatkowski has promoted it as a business that offers customers much lower fees than credit cards, but consumer groups and charities have criticized the sector for encouraging people to shoulder more. debt they cannot afford to pay.
The UK Labor government last month launched plans to regulate the sector like consumer credit while the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said earlier this year that BNPL should be regulated like cards credit.
