Stripe, which helps businesses accept payments online, said the tie-up would make it easier for retailers to add Klarna as a payment option on their website. Klarna typically partners with stores directly to embed its checkout button. The move could give Klarna a much wider reach of customers. Founded in 2005, Klarna has become one of the biggest names in European tech recently thanks to the massive surge in demand for its Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) service, which lets users spread the cost of their purchases over a period of interest-free instalments.
Klarna makes money from deals with retailers, which pay the company a small cut on each transaction processed through its platform. Stripe said early results showed merchants saw a 27% increase in sales on average after integrating with Klarna, while average order value climbed 41%.
Stripe’s deal with Klarna could be a way for the payments company to capitalise on a fast-growing trend as rivals like Square and PayPal make big moves in the space. Square recently agreed to acquire Australia’s Afterpay for USD 29 billion, while PayPal has its own BNPL service and is buying Japanese rival Paidy for USD 2.7 billion.
As well as partnering globally, Stripe and Klarna said they were also strengthening their relationship in North America. Stripe is now used in about 90% of Klarna’s payment processing volume in the US and Canada, the companies said.
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