Klarna gets SoftBank Vision Fund backing along with a new $45.6bn price tag

Cash is quite literally flooding into buy-now-pay-later superstar Klarna at an incredible rate, as it yesterday confirmed a fresh $639m funding round from investors, including SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2.

As a reminder, Klarna already raised $1bn earlier this year from a number of undisclosed investors at a $31bn price tag.

Just three months on from the last round, yesterday’s new round came at a higher-than-expected whopping $45.6bn valuation.

Yanni Pipilis, managing partner for SoftBank Investment Advisers said, 

“Klarna’s growth is founded on a deep understanding of how the purchasing behaviors of consumers are changing, an evolution which we believe is accelerating,” said SoftBank Investment Advisers managing partner Yanni Pipilis.

“Klarna has already successfully expanded into the US and we are excited to continue supporting the team in bringing the next generation of financial services to new markets worldwide.”

Along with SoftBank, existing investors Adit Ventures, Honeycomb Asset Management and WestCap Group all took part in the funding.

“Consumers continue to reject interest-and fee-laden revolving credit and are moving toward debit while simultaneously seeking retail experiences that better meet their needs,” said Klarna’s founder and CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski.

“I’m very proud of the investors who are supporting Klarna’s ambition to challenge these outdated models to empower consumers with fair, transparent, and convenient products to help them bank, shop and pay each day.”

In the first quarter of 2021, Siemiatkowski said Klarna saw “exceptional momentum” in the US where it now has 18m customers and works with 24 of the top 100 US retailers.

Total gross merchandise value for the fintech in the first quarter was $18.9bn, up from $9.9bn in Q1 2020.

Klarna now operates in 17 markets, with several launches coming up this year including France just last week.