Klarna expands debit card across Europe

Klarna has launched its debit-first payment card across Europe, extending a product that has already attracted more than 685,000 users in the US since its debut in July.

Klarna expands debit card across Europe

The move underscores the Swedish fintech’s evolution from a niche buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider into a full-spectrum payments player intent on competing head-on with established banks.

The Klarna Card, powered by Visa’s Flexible Credential technology, is debit by default but integrates with Klarna’s popular financing features.

Users can pay instantly with their own funds or switch to flexible repayment options within the Klarna app, including Pay in 3, Pay Later, or longer-term financing for larger purchases, subject to approval.

The card is accepted at over 150 million Visa merchant locations worldwide, online and in-store, positioning Klarna as a serious rival to traditional debit and credit cards.

Restoring choice at the checkout

Sebastian Siemiatkowski, Klarna’s co-founder and chief executive, framed the launch as part of a broader mission to restore consumer control: “When I was a teenager working in retail, the checkout terminals gave consumers a simple choice: debit or credit.

Over time, that choice was taken away and consumers had less control over when to use debit or credit. Our new Klarna Card brings that choice back, giving consumers control over their money again.”

The product also comes with several consumer-friendly features.

These include a free Klarna Balance account to store cash, no foreign exchange fees on overseas purchases, and instant card issuance without a credit check.

A credit check is only carried out when a customer opts to convert a purchase into a financed transaction.

Rolling out across the EU

The debit card is initially being offered in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden, with plans to expand to Denmark, Germany, Norway and Poland in the near future.

Card-based products already account for around 10 per cent of Klarna’s global payment volumes, and the company is betting that further European uptake will accelerate this trend.

For Klarna, the European expansion is about more than product diversification.

It signals a strategic attempt to position itself as a daily payments provider rather than solely a BNPL specialist.

By blending the familiarity of a debit card with the flexibility of instalments, Klarna is redefining consumer expectations of what a modern payment card can deliver.

As competition intensifies between fintechs, banks and card networks, Klarna’s latest push demonstrates how the battleground for consumer loyalty is shifting firmly towards choice, flexibility and control at the point of payment.