Klarna built its name around a small button that lets you split a purchase into four payments. Now it is trying to become a bigger money company, and on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, investors got a reminder that the path forward has bumps.
Klarna's new projection for 2026 revenue is $4.08 billion to $4.16 billion. That is a step down from about $4.3 billion previously. The causes are currency moves going against the company and slower spending from shoppers in Germany.
CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski said German retail spending should stay soft through the end of the year. "That's what we're playing out through the rest of the year," he said. He also pointed to other markets as brighter spots, and the company filed for a U.S. banking charter about a month ago.
The forecast cut lands even after a decent quarter. In the April-to-June period, Klarna posted net income of $9 million, surpassing the average $18 million loss that analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted.
Revenue came in at $1.04 billion, up about 27% from the same quarter last year. Those are good numbers, but investors were not in the mood. By 10:11 a.m. Eastern time, the stock had fallen roughly 20%, one of the sharpest drops since its IPO last year.
The company is also changing its leadership team. Klarna is looking for a CFO, or chief financial officer, to be based in New York and replace Niclas Neglén next year. Neglén has been CFO for six years, joined Klarna in 2021, and previously spent time at HSBC's private banking arm and GE Capital.
Chief Marketing Officer David Sandström is also leaving next year, ending a nine-year run. Siemiatkowski said that being more visible in New York is important for staying connected to investors and the broader stock market.
Citizens analysts David Scharf and Zachary Oster said the moves raise fresh concerns. "The executive departures, alongside the lowered second half guide, are driving more uncertainty around the outlook for the business in the coming quarters for investors," they wrote.
Klarna has publicly posted numbers show it is not standing still. Revenue per active customer rose 24%, which the company credits to products like subscriptions that people use all the time. Its transaction margin dollars, meaning the revenue left after paying transaction costs, rose 42%.
About 90% of Klarna's funding comes from low-cost consumer deposits, which helps keep its foundation cheap. The company now has over 1.2 million merchant partnerships, up 54% from a year earlier. It also recently added a new Apple leasing program, has a deal with JPMorgan's payments unit, and launched a membership program in Europe.
Klarna is also thinking about forward flow deals, which are agreements to sell bundles of future loans to outside investors. Siemiatkowski calls that natural diversification as the company grows beyond its original buy-now, pay-later roots.
Klarna's stock is still down roughly 50% since its market debut, even though it has trended upward since March. Put simply, a big part of the value is tied to what happens next, not what already happened.
The rest of the year will test Germany's spending and American growth at the same time. If consumers keep holding back, this forecast is a warning and not a one-off. Either way, the story will be written in everyday choices about how people pay and borrow.
