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- Klarna is assembling a team to build a stock-trading tool to compete with Robinhood, according to an internal message seen by BI.
- Klarna said it was at "the very early stages of exploring this concept" and that it might decide not to take it to market.
- The Swedish buy-now, pay-later giant is preparing for an IPO that's expected to be in the US.
Swedish fintech firm Klarna is hiring a team to build a product that would compete with Robinhood's trading platform by letting customers buy and sell stocks through its app.
The company internally advertised four roles to create a team to build the new product, according to an internal Slack message seen by Business Insider.
The potential move into trading, which comes as Klarna prepares for a widely anticipated IPO, is a deviation from its core business of providing financial services for consumers to pay for goods in installments, known as buy-now, pay-later services, or BNPL.
"Our mission is to obliterate the barriers to consumer investing and empower every Klarna user to build their financial future in a single place - the Klarna App," the internal message said. "Think Trade Republic, Robinhood, N26… but with a Klarna-size upgrade."
The post, written by Klarna director and domain lead Ludo Lombaard, was shared in the company's "general" Slack channel on October 6.
Lombaard said the company is exploring the possibility of "offering customers the opportunity to buy and sell stocks" and exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, in the Klarna app. The message said that Klarna plans to add "the world of consumer investments to our product offering."
The company is internally recruiting engineering and trading roles to work on the product, according to the post.
"We are starting from the ground up. So it is a good time to get involved," the message said, adding that the challenge "is not for everyone."
"Expect long days and the exhilarating rush of building something that matters," the post continued.
It ended with a quote from the movie "Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit": "If you wanna be somebody, if you wanna go somewhere, you got to wake up and pay attention."
A spokesperson for Klarna told BI: "Klarna continuously explores new product concepts to serve our customers. This exploration does not mean that such a product will eventually go to market."
The spokesperson added: "We are at the very early stages of exploring this concept and are putting in place a small team to validate our hypotheses. There are no firm plans for the product and it is possible that, after the team's exploration, we decide not to go ahead."
Klarna gears up for US IPO
Founded in 2005, Klarna offers short-term financing to customers online and in-store at checkout. It has partnered with more than 600,00 merchants, including Apple, Adidas, and Airbnb.
The model has been a mainstay for Klarna, which in 2021 was valued at $45.6 billion — making it the most valuable startup in Europe at the time. Its valuation fell to $6.7 billion in 2022 during a wider market downturn for startups.
Klarna is in talks with banks to IPO in the US, at a $20 billion valuation, Bloomberg reported in February.
This year Klarna has ramped up its activity in the US, including a partnership with Uber and the launch of a cashback card.
In August, Klarna said its US gross profits increased by 93% for the first half of 2024 on a year-over-year basis.
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