Klarna Bank AB is close to selecting Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to lead the financial technology firm’s US initial public offering next year, according to people familiar with the matter. The potential move comes as the Stockholm-based lender is in talks with investors for a sale of existing shares that would come before the proposed IPO, Bloomberg News has reported. Klarna had considered seeking a valuation of around $20 billion in the IPO, people familiar with the process said previously. Deliberations are ongoing, details of the IPO could change and other banks could be added to the lineup, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public. Representatives for Klarna and Goldman Sachs declined to comment. Klarna’s private valuation reached $45.6 billion in a 2021 funding round before falling to $6.7 billion the following year, with rising interest rates weighing on lenders. The company has refocused itself ahead of the planned IPO, shedding businesses and investing in artificial intelligence. Klarna agreed to a deal to divest its Checkout payments business for about $520 million, Bloomberg News reported in June. The company swung to an adjusted profit in the first quarter as revenue in the US, now its biggest market, surged 38%. Founded in 2005, Klarna offers payment options to about 150 million active customers making around 2 million transactions per day, its website shows. It has 34 million customers in the US.
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