Klarna continues to see strong demand for its buy now, pay later product in the U.S.
The Swedish company said Wednesday (Feb. 22) it had seen a 71% increase in gross merchandise value (GMV) in the United States last year. Klarna attributed its growth to “surging demand” for its app, which has more than 8 million monthly active users and 30 million downloads, the company said in a news release.
“We’re thrilled at the growth and momentum we’ve achieved in the U.S. and are confident in our path towards profitability,” said Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski in the release.
He added he hopes to see Klarna reach monthly profits in 2023 following a rough 2022, comparing the company to a “container ship” in a Financial Times interview in November.
“You don’t turn it around in the quarter, it takes some time,” Siemiatkowski said.
Last year saw Klarna’s U.S. GMV reach $80 billion, meaning this latest jump brings that figure to nearly $137 billion.
And last month, the company announced that the U.S. is now its largest market in terms of revenue, with volumes rising 92% year over year.
“Despite the challenging macroeconomic environment, we continue to remain laser-focused on investing in our growth in the market to offer valuable shopping and payment services for consumers and be a growth partner for retailers,” a Klarna spokesperson told PYMNTS at the time.
The company also unveiled a financial planning tool called “Money Store” to help BNPL users track their spending habits in January.
“Money Story provides our fast-growing network of over 150 million consumers with useful insights into their spending habits with Klarna, encouraging them to cultivate smart spending habits for 2023,” Klarna Head of North America Kristina Elkhazin told PYMNTS via email at the time.
Klarna’s latest news comes five days after reports that rival Affirm is raising interest rates on its BNPL loans.
Speaking to Bloomberg last week, CEO Max Levchin said the company has convinced a number of major retailers — Dick’s Sporting Goods and Shopify among them — to permit it to increase its interest rates.
“We are trying to run a profitable company — that’s a conversation that every merchant understands very well,” Levchin told Bloomberg. “These are very positive conversations in the sense that we can quantify exactly how much more value we can bring to them.”
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