Swedish buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) giant Klarna could be primed for an initial public offering in the first half of 2025, according to FTSE 250-listed investor Chrysalis Investments Ltd (LSE:CHRY).
Chrysalis, in a quarterly trading update, said “We are… expectant of a Klarna IPO in due course; the next potential window for this would appear to be 1H25.
“This would further boost the company's liquidity and, if market rumours around IPO valuation prove to be correct, lead to further NAV per share accretion”.
Chrysalis deferred to its investment advisors, who said: “The increased cadence of news flow ties in neatly with speculation surrounding Klarna's possible IPO; the next potential window for this appears to be the first half of 2025.”
Alongside these comments, Chrysalis increased the carrying value of its Klarna stake to £120.6 million from £100.3 million in the previous quarter, driven by the increased valuations of Klarna’s listed peers.
According to Deutsche Bank analysts, this implies a $14.6 billion for Klarna.
Klarna’s estimated valuation has fluctuated wildly.
Following a 2021 cash injection from SoftBank, it was valued at more than $40 billion, but more recent valuations have been as low as $8 billion.
Due to the lack of real-time price discovery, unlisted companies’ valuations can be highly subjective and contingent on funding rounds and NAV recalculations.
Klarna boss Sebastian Siemiatkowski has hinted that New York is the preferred destination for an IPO, despite hopes that it could opt for a flotation on the London Stock Exchange.