The Swedish fintech Klarna has filed for an initial public offering (IPO) in the U.S., the company announced. The company submitted a draft registration statement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the initial public offering will take place after the SEC review, with the timing of the listing depending on market conditions, reports the Financial Times.
Recall that Klarna was valued at $46 billion in 2021, making it the most valuable startup in Europe, while just a year later, in 2022, during the last investment cycle, it was valued at only $6.7 billion as investors changed their stance on fintech companies due to rising interest rates.
The company has also suffered due to a deep rift in management, specifically due to disagreements between the two co-founders: Sebastian Siemiatkowski and Victor Jacobsson, who is also the third-largest shareholder in Klarna. This conflict culminated last month in Jacobsson’s removal from Klarna’s board of directors.
Klarna’s choice of the U.S. for its IPO is yet another blow to European capital markets following a similar decision by fellow countryman Spotify to choose Wall Street for its listing in 2018. However, this decision is not surprising given that Klarna has focused on expansion in the U.S. in recent years, which has affected its business results, but after four years of heavy losses, it has recently returned to profitable waters.
