Klarna – „Buy Now Pay Later” firm to launch a physical card in the UK

Klarna, a leading global banking, payments and shopping service, announces the launch of Klarna Card in the UK. The new physical card will bring Klarna’s flexible and transparent payments experience to in-store payments anywhere where cards are accepted. 

„The launch is a major step in Klarna’s journey to give UK consumers the flexibility to pay later for purchases everywhere, without the inherent risks of interest and revolving credit,” according to the press release.

„The card launches with Klarna’s Pay in 30, which allows consumers to pay anytime up to 30 days after purchase, with plans to add additional payment options in the future,” the company explains.

Klarna’s Pay Later products are „a fairer and more sustainable alternative to traditional credit”, providing payment flexibility with clear payment schedules, no interest and, in the case of Klarna, no late fees.

Alex Marsh, Head of Klarna UK, says: „Consumers are rejecting credit products which charge double-digit interest rates while allowing repayments to be put off indefinitely. For online purchases where credit makes sense, buy now pay later has become the sustainable alternative with no interest and clear payment schedules. The launch of Klarna Card in the UK brings those benefits to the offline world, giving consumers the control and transparency of BNPL for all of their instore purchases.”

Globally, the Klarna Card recently reached more than 800,000 consumers across Sweden and Germany, and the company has announced plans to launch a card in the US.

In the UK, the Klarna Card will be made available progressively reaching all eligible consumers in the upcoming months; the card currently has a waitlist of 400,000 consumers in the UK showing strong demand for a new approach to credit.

Today’s announcement comes after a series of enhancements to Klarna’s offering in the UK. In October, the company launched ‘Pay Now’, ensuring UK consumers can always pay immediately and in full, wherever Klarna is available, with the same payment experience whether they choose to pay now or later. And in its continued drive to set standards for the UK payments industry, Klarna has also strengthened affordability checks and checkout language, provided more ways for consumers to challenge complaints decisions on the rare occasions this becomes necessary, and removed the last remaining late fees on its regulated financing product.

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Over 250,000 retail partners, including H&M, IKEA, Expedia Group, Samsung, ASOS, Peloton, Abercrombie & Fitch, Nike and AliExpress have enabled Klarna’s innovative shopping experience online and in-store. Klarna is one of the most highly valued private fintechs globally with a valuation of $45.6 billion. Klarna was founded in 2005, has over 5,000 employees and is active in 20 countries.