Klarna’s IPO pops, raising $1.4B, with Sequoia as the biggest winner

Klarna, the well-established fintech company, has successfully made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange, raising an impressive $1.4 billion. This milestone marks a significant achievement for the firm, which has been navigating the path to an initial public offering (IPO) for two decades. On Wednesday, Klarna's shares were priced at $40 each, surpassing the anticipated range of $35 to $37, and the company entered the market with a valuation of $15 billion. The stock opened strongly, initially trading at $52, although it later stabilized around $46 during the day. Notably, out of the 34.3 million shares offered, only 5 million were sold directly by Klarna, while the majority were sold by existing investors, including major stakeholder Sequoia Capital. Other significant investors, such as Silver Lake, BlackRock, and entities linked to Dutch billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen, also participated in the sale. Despite these transactions, many investors retained a substantial portion of their holdings. Klarna's co-founder and CEO, Sebastian Siemiatkowski, chose not to sell any of his shares, which were valued at $1.02 billion at the IPO price. He maintains a 7.5% ownership stake in the company. Meanwhile, co-founder Victor Jacobsson, who departed in 2012, did sell 1.1 million shares but continues to hold over 8% of Klarna. Co-founder Niklas Adalberth reportedly owns just under 3 million shares. Sequoia Capital remains the dominant investor in Klarna, controlling nearly 23% of the company. Michael Moritz, a prominent venture capitalist, was the first to invest in Klarna back in 2010, and he has continued to play a crucial role, serving as the company’s chairperson even after leaving Sequoia in 2023. Reflecting on this significant moment, Siemiatkowski expressed, "This moment feels surreal. When we started Klarna back in 2005, it was just a wild idea. We faced numerous rejections and skepticism, but we persevered. Going public in New York is a huge milestone. It’s not just a milestone; it’s a statement that dreamers from Stockholm can truly succeed on the global stage." Interestingly, while Klarna's IPO raised $1.4 billion, it still falls short of the record for the largest IPO of 2025, which is currently held by CoreWeave, having raised $1.5 billion in June.