trending
Klarna has taken another decisive step beyond buy now, pay later with the launch of instant P2P payments across 13 European markets.
Klarna pushes into P2P payments
The new functionality allows users to send money to friends and family directly from the its app, positioning the company more squarely as a digital bank rather than a point-of-sale finance provider.
The move reflects their ambition to become a daily financial companion.
P2P payments are among the most frequently used banking features in Europe, and their inclusion turns Klarna into a more comprehensive hub for spending, saving and money management.
From BNPL to Banking Flywheel
The launch builds on rapid momentum across Klarna’s banking products. Since the introduction of Klarna Balance accounts in 2024, customer deposits have almost doubled, reaching $14bn by September 2025.
Meanwhile, the rollout of Klarna Card has been strikingly successful, with more than 4 million sign-ups in just four months.
Together, these products are creating a reinforcing flywheel.
Card usage is rising, deposits are growing, and Klarna is steadily increasing the share of customer spending that flows through its own ecosystem. Card payments now account for around 15% of total transaction volume, strengthening Klarna’s economics and customer stickiness.
Designed for Simplicity, Built for Scale
Klarna’s P2P payments are deliberately simple.
Users can send money using a phone number, email address, QR code or saved contact, mirroring the ease of handing over cash while retaining the safeguards of a regulated bank.
Behind the scenes, Klarna runs fraud and eligibility checks before processing each transfer.
Initially, transfers are limited to Klarna users, but the roadmap is clear.
The company plans to extend payments to non-customers and enable cross-border transfers, broadening the utility of the service and increasing Klarna’s relevance in everyday financial interactions.
An Eye on the Next Rails
For now, Klarna’s P2P payments run on traditional banking infrastructure.
However, the company has confirmed it is exploring stablecoin-based settlement as a future enhancement. If implemented, this could improve speed and efficiency while reducing dependency on legacy rails.
For Klarna, P2P payments are less about feature parity and more about strategy. They signal a continued shift from transactional credit provider to full-service digital bank — one increasingly embedded in the daily financial lives of its users.
Comments