Klarna continues shopping spree with discount startup deal

Swedish buy now, pay later (BNPL) giant Klarna shows no sign of stopping its acquisition spree. 

The lender has acquired discount browser extension Piggy, according to a report from FinanceFWD. Much like the PayPal-acquired Honey, Piggy alerts users to cheaper offers when browsing shopping websites. 

This is the eighth startup the BNPL firm has bought in recent months. It acquired  comparison site PriceRunner for a cool €930 million (roughly $1.05 billion) earlier this month. Market officials estimate that Piggy was not quite as pricey at $100 million. 

Klarna’s acquisitions are a sign that it increasingly sees itself as becoming the de facto superapp for shopping, putting it in direct competition with PayPal.The acquisitions by the American payment company have concentrated on regional players like Sweden’s iZettle and Japanese BNPL solution Paid’y.

PayPal also bought out crypto security firm Curv as part of its push into digital assets. Klarna, whose CEO has previously cast doubt on the gold rush into digital currencies, is yet to make any moves in the space. 

The Block has reached Klarna for comment.