Swedish fintech company Klarna announced Tuesday that it has officially entered the Canadian market. The buy-now-pay-later platform includes an app and Klarna has already secured some big name retailers in Canada including homegrown brands Harry Rosen, Mejuri, and Frank And Oak and international players such as Sephora Canada, L’Oreal Canada, and GameStop among others.
“Consumers across the world are moving away from traditional credit models to alternatives that better meet their expectations by offering smarter and more transparent ways to purchase, and the Canadian shopper is no different,” said Klarna Co-Founder and CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski.
“Recent Klarna research has found that at least half of Canadian shoppers ages 25-56 are looking for flexible payment options at checkout. With our expansion to Canada, we are bringing consumers the more sustainable, flexible payment alternatives they are looking for, empowering them to save time, money and make more informed financial decisions.”
Klarna’s “Pay in 4” allows consumers who use Klarna at a retail partner’s checkout to be able to split their purchases into four interest-free payments paid every two weeks from the time of purchase. Klarna says that the benefits include “greater transparency, financial control and choice”.
The Klarna app has over 23 million monthly active users globally. App users can track and manage Klarna payments, access to exclusive rewards via Klarna’s Rewards Club, along with price drop notifications, curated content, and delivery tracking.
Klarna said in a release that Canadian consumers will soon be able to access additional app features including Klarna’s innovative “Shop Anywhere” service that allows users to “Pay in 4” at any online store, regardless of whether they are a Klarna retailer or not, as well as money saving tools, and live shopping experiences.
“We look forward to working closely with our fast-growing network of Canadian retail partners to help them to navigate the increasingly omnichannel retail landscape, adapt to new consumer demands, and help them reach new audiences,” said Kristina Elkhazin, Head of Canada, Klarna.
Toronto is Klarna’s hub in Canada. The company has opened its first North American product development and tech hub in the city with plans to hire more than 500 engineers by 2025. Offices are also planned for Vancouver and Quebec at some point and Klarna said in a release that it plans to work with local academic institutions to “help develop a skilled workforce that will deliver new innovative solutions, and, in turn, help other businesses thrive and grow.”
Klarna partnered with Moneris for its expansion into the Canadian market. Klarna was founded in 2005 and has over 100 million global active users and 2 million transactions per day. Klarna boasts over 250,000 global retail partners, including such names as H&M, Saks, Sephora, Macys, IKEA, Expedia Group, and Nike. Klarna has over 5,000 employees and is active in 20 markets and has a valuation of USD $45.6 billion.
