Klarna: A Curious Case in Buy Now

The core of Klarna’s business, as anyone who’s impulsively purchased a slightly-too-expensive pair of shoes can attest, is “Buy Now, Pay Later” – BNPL, as the cool kids call it. Their signature offering, “Pay in 4,” is elegantly simple: you get your thing now, and then spread the cost over four interest-free payments. Provided, of course, you don’t forget and end up owing money. Which, let’s be honest, happens more often than we’d like to admit. For longer-term purchases – sofas, televisions, that slightly-too-expensive espresso machine – they offer “Fair Financing,” which, naturally, involves interest. It’s a subtle distinction, really, between ‘fair’ and ‘not quite free’.







