Swedish e-commerce firm Klarna has received full banking licence from Finansinspektionen, the country’s financial supervisory authority.
Klarna, which currently caters to 60 million consumers and works with 70,000 merchants, had applied for the banking licence in October 2015.
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The licence will allow the firm to expand its product offering for customers and merchants.
Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski said: “Klarna has played a role in disrupting payments services for the better and now as a consumer-oriented, product driven and technology intensive bank, we have the tools to drive change in retail banking.
“We will do this by providing solutions that ensure a smooth customer experience, help people streamline their financial lives and continue to support businesses by solving the complexity in handling payments.”
Klarna, set up in 2005, is valued at over $2bn. The firm has operations in 18 markets and employs over 1,500 staff.
