Klarna, a Swedish fintech company known for its “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) service, has partnered with cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase to add stablecoins to its institutional financing toolkit.
Under the agreement, the global digital banking and payments firm plans to raise near-term funds from institutional investors denominated in USDC (USDC), using Coinbase’s crypto-native infrastructure, according to an announcement on Friday.
“This is an exciting first step towards a new way of raising finance,” said Klarna CFO Niclas Neglén. “Stablecoin connects us with a whole new class of institutional investors and gives us the potential to diversify our funding sources in ways that simply weren’t possible a few years ago,” he added.
The new funding channel will complement Klarna’s existing sources, which include consumer deposits, long-term debt and short-term commercial paper.
Related: Swedish fintech giant Klarna will ’embrace cryptocurrencies’, says CEO
Klarna’s crypto push
Klarna said the stablecoin funding initiative remains in development and is separate from its consumer- and merchant-oriented crypto plans. Those efforts, which may include additional digital asset wallets or services, are expected to continue moving forward into 2026.
However, the payments company warned that the initiative is subject to regulatory, operational and market risks, and noted that actual results could differ from expectations.
Klarna said it selected Coinbase for the initiative because of its experience in providing crypto infrastructure to large enterprises. Currently, the exchange supports more than 260 companies worldwide and offers blockchain-based financial services, custody and settlement.
Related: Stripe’s blockchain stable Tempo launches public testnet
Klarna launches dollar-backed stablecoin
Last month, Klarna launched a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar, becoming the first digital bank to issue a token on Tempo, a new layer 1 blockchain developed by Stripe and Paradigm. The stablecoin, called KlarnaUSD, is currently available on the Tempo testnet, with a mainnet launch planned for 2026, according to the company.
Built by Stripe-owned stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge, the token extends Klarna’s long-standing partnership with Stripe across its global payments network.
The GENIUS Act, passed in the United States in July, established clear rules for stablecoins and has helped fuel a wave of new problems.
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