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Klarna AB early Tuesday reported a 26% jump in revenue for its September quarter, to $903 million, the highest revenue number in its 20-year history. The Sweden-based company, which maintains major operations in the U.S. market and internationally, said it processed $32.7 billion in transactions for the quarter, up 23%.
Klarna reported it swung to an operating loss of $83 million, compared to a profit of $13 million a year ago, as sales and marketing costs rose 46%, to $102 million.
The company’s Klarna Card, launched this summer as a product combining debit and credit, has attracted 4 million users, the company reported. The card’s fast ramp-up has been such that the product accounted for 15% of Klarna’s transactions worldwide in October.
On the acquiring side of its business, Klarna reported signing 235,000 merchants in the quarter, a record high, bringing its merchant count to 850,000.
Klarna, which operates in 26 countries and entered the U.S. market in 2015 with Macy’s and Overstock.com among its first merchants, said its American expansion, at a 43% rise in volume year-over-year, now exceeds its growth in any other market. With that rise came a 51% increase in revenue year-over-year, the company reported, without citing a specific number. That growth has positioned Klarna as triple the size of its closest competitor in Pay in 4 volume, the company says.
Pay in 4 is Klarna’s entry in buy now, pay later installment lending. Realized losses in this business declined to 0.44% of gross merchandise volume, the company reported, on the basis of improved underwriting.
The company last month said it plans to bring to the U.S. a global membership program featuring Premium and Max rewards levels and offering cash back and benefits related to travel. The program started out in Europe.
