After the tariff suspension, the wave of IPOs in the US stock market has resumed, with the buy now, pay later giant Klarna planning to raise $1.27 billion through its listing
Financial technology company Klarna Group and its shareholders plan to raise up to $1.27 billion through an initial public offering (IPO) in the U.S., reviving its New York listing plan that was shelved due to market volatility. Klarna plans to issue 34.3 million shares at a price of $35 to $37 per share, with a post-listing market value of approximately $14 billion. The company rapidly rose to prominence during the pandemic due to its "buy now, pay later" service and is fully committed to advancing its transformation into a "global digital bank."
According to Zhitong Finance APP, the financial technology company Klarna Group (KLAR.US) in the buy now, pay later (BNPL) sector and some of its shareholders plan to raise up to $1.27 billion through an initial public offering (IPO) in the United States, restarting its previously shelved New York listing plan due to market volatility.
According to documents submitted by Klarna to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Tuesday, the company and some investors intend to issue 34.3 million shares at a price of $35 to $37 per share. If calculated at the upper limit of the price range, combined with the number of shares disclosed in the documents, Klarna's market value after listing would be approximately $14 billion.
In the specific issuance structure, Klarna plans to sell 5.6 million shares itself, while the remaining 28.8 million shares will be sold by "selling shareholders" (including company executives, entities related to Sequoia Capital, and early investors such as Heartland A/S).
In fact, Klarna had submitted a public IPO application to the U.S. SEC as early as March this year, but the listing plan was forced to pause due to market turbulence caused by the Trump administration's trade war in April. Since then, several fintech companies that had previously delayed their IPOs, such as eToro Group and Chime Financial, have restarted their listing processes.
Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, Klarna has gained prominence with its buy now, pay later payment service—the online shopping boom during the pandemic has rapidly popularized this model and allowed Klarna to rise quickly. Under the leadership of CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski, the company is fully promoting its transformation into a "global digital bank," aiming to attract users to open debit cards and other financial products, expanding its business boundaries.
As a major competitor of Klarna, Affirm Holdings (AFRM.US) has seen its stock price rise by 45% this year.
In terms of financial data, documents submitted by Klarna show that for the six months ended June 30, the company's total revenue was $1.52 billion, with a net loss of $153 million; in the same period last year, its total revenue was $1.33 billion, with a net loss of $38 million.
In the financial report released last month, Klarna revealed that the company has set aside more reserves for potential bad loans. However, Siemiatkowski emphasized that this measure does not mean that the number of users unable to repay loans has increased (more is based on prudent financial arrangements based on risk assessment).
This IPO is led by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., and Morgan Stanley, with documents also listing another 11 financial institutions participating in the transaction. Klarna plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "KLAR."
