The logo of Swedish payment provider Klarna is shown on the display of a smartphone on April 22, 2020 in Berlin, Germany.
Thomas Trutschel | Photothek | Getty Images
LONDON — Klarna is close to finalizing a $1 billion funding round that would give the Swedish fintech company a valuation of $31 billion, two sources familiar with the matter told CNBC.
The Stockholm-based firm is one of the world’s largest providers of “buy now, pay later” services, which allow shoppers to spread out the cost of their purchases over a period of interest-free instalments.
The company is raising a bumper round ahead of a potential blockbuster stock market listing that would be a boon to some of its earliest venture capital investors, like Atomico and Sequoia. Klarna is also backed by big-name investors like Snoop Dogg and Ant Group.
The deal could close within days, the sources said, preferring to remain anonymous as the details haven’t yet been made public. The fresh capital injection was oversubscribed and raised in just a week, one of the sources said.
Klarna declined to comment when contacted by CNBC.
Klarna is now Europe’s top tech unicorn, surpassing payments software firm Checkout.com, which hit a $15 billion valuation last month.
Klarna is one of the world’s largest providers of “buy now, pay later” services.