• Klarna's U.S. sales jumped 45% year-over-year from November 1 through Black Friday, signaling robust consumer demand for flexible payments.
  • The buy-now-pay-later giant saw strength across footwear, tech, and home goods, with Birkenstock, Apple AirPods 4, and Ninja products leading categories.
  • The strong holiday start follows a mixed Q3 where revenue hit $903 million but shares fell on profitability timing concerns.

Klarna’s Black Friday weekend kicked off with a bang, as the Swedish fintech reported a 45% surge in U.S. sales from the start of November through the peak shopping day. The data, based on online and in-app activity across its vast network, points to resilient consumer spending and the continued mainstream adoption of buy-now-pay-later options for holiday purchases.

Footwear, technology, beauty, and home goods were the standout categories. Birkenstock led the pack in shoes, while Apple's latest AirPods 4 topped tech purchases. In the beauty aisle, Maison Francis Kurkdjian's Baccarat Rouge 540 fragrance was the top seller. The home goods category was dominated by Ninja products, with mattresses making a surprising leap to second place, according to the company's internal transaction data.

This early holiday strength builds on the momentum Klarna reported in its third-quarter earnings, released just before the shopping season began. The company posted revenue of $903 million for Q3, with U.S. revenue growing an impressive 51% year-over-year. Gross merchandise volume (GMV) reached $32.7 billion, and its fair financing product saw explosive growth of 139%.

Despite these strong operational metrics, Klarna's stock price declined nearly 9% in premarket trading following the Q3 report, closing at $33.40. People familiar with investor sentiment said the drop reflected concerns about near-term profitability timing, specifically accounting lags related to the rapid expansion of its fair financing offerings.

For the crucial fourth quarter, which includes the full holiday season, Klarna has projected even stronger results. The company guides for revenue of approximately $1.07 billion and GMV between $37.5 billion and $38.5 billion. Transaction margin dollars are expected to land between $390 million and $400 million.

A company spokesperson, when reached for comment on the Black Friday figures, highlighted the cross-category strength as evidence of "broad consumer confidence in flexible payment solutions." The performance across luxury beauty, consumer electronics, and home goods suggests Klarna's appeal spans multiple consumer segments and price points.

The 45% U.S. growth significantly outpaces broader retail estimates and validates the company's strategic push to become a full-service neobank. With over 114 million active users and partnerships with roughly 850,000 retailers globally, Klarna is leveraging its scale and AI-driven platform to capture a larger share of holiday wallet spend, even as regulatory scrutiny of the BNPL sector intensifies in several markets.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the year-over-year growth figure for Klarna's U.S. Q3 revenue. It is 51%, not 45%. The 45% figure refers specifically to the Black Friday period sales growth.