Klarna Group Plc Chief Executive Officer Sebastian Siemiatkowski didn’t sell any shares in his company’s blockbuster IPO this week — but he still managed to use the listing to consolidate his control over the company.
Ahead of the offering, the 43-year-old founder pledged Klarna shares as collateral to secure a $112 million loan, according to a person familiar with the matter. The lender SEB AB provided the funding last month, with Siemiatkowski pledging a roughly $980 million stake in exchange as collateral, based on Klarna’s IPO price and regulatory filings.
Sebastian Siemiatkowski on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg
After securing the financing at a low loan-to-value ...
