Buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform Klarna on Tuesday (Dec. 14) teamed up with account-to-account payment company GoCardless to roll out bank debit payments to more than 21 million customers across the U.S. for its Pay in 4 offering and its financing solution.
“The U.S. is a key market for Klarna, and we continue to see strong growth, doubling our customer base to over 21 million from last year,” said Koen Köppen, CTO at Klarna, in the joint announcement. “To continue along that trajectory, we need partners that not only provide our consumers and retailers with more choice and control, but also offer us cutting-edge technology and best-in-class service. We’re excited to work with GoCardless and leverage its expertise in account-to-account payments as we expand in the U.S.”
The partnership with Klarna builds on GoCardless’ presence in the U.S., which also includes DocuSign and 8×8. The company opened a second office in New York City and will continue to focus on growth across the country after doubling its headcount this year in New York and San Francisco.
GoCardless plans to grow its U.S. team by another 125% in 2022.
“We’ve been proud to work with Klarna in the U.K. since 2018,” said Hiroki Takeuchi, co-founder and CEO of GoCardless. “From the start, it was clear one of our value-adds was our global bank debit network, enabling Klarna to access multiple markets through a single platform.
“After years of phenomenal growth across the world, we’re thrilled to be Klarna’s bank debit provider as they make further inroads in the U.S. With card fees rising and the appetite for debt dropping, we predict rapid growth for alternative payment methods,” he added.
The growth “also extends to how shoppers prefer to pay off their balances — namely, through their bank account, whether that’s powered by ACH debit or newer technology like open banking,” said Takeuchi. “Over the next few years, we expect account-to-account payments to challenge the dominance of cards as they tap into changing consumer demand and provide merchants significant benefits in terms of cost, conversion and churn.”
Related news: Klarna Debuts Browser Extension for Online Stores
Earlier this month, Klarna launched a browser extension that will allow customers to use its flexible payment options on their desktop computers at all online stores, even those that aren’t Klarna partners.
We’re always on the lookout for opportunities to partner with innovators and disruptors.
Learn More