Stockholm, May 7, 2024 – Klarna, the AI powered global payments network and shopping assistant, has called on EU leaders to invest in AI training to help citizens transition to a genAI world. The call is part of a manifestoKlarna has outlined to help create the Silicon Valley of Europe, ahead of the European elections this June.
As a leading European company, passionate about the future of Europe, Klarna’s ‘Pink Deal’, calls on policymakers and regulators leaders to make the EU’s financial services industry even more competitive as well as customer friendly through smarter regulation.
The key policy recommendations are:
- Prioritise AI training. AI can revolutionize industries and drive economic growth, but we have already seen the potential impact on employment: while new roles will flourish, some current roles will become obsolete. The EU must encourage innovation for responsible use of AI and prepare the current generation by kicking-off a massive training programme to prepare people for tomorrow.
- End the ‘app tax’ funding drain. European developers pay more than 23 billion Euro each year to the two big US app store owners. This slows innovation, costs consumers and drains funds out of the EU start-up ecosystem and into the US tech giants. The Digital Markets Act shows Europe is willing to be tough on tech taxes, the EU must finally put an end to the unfair ‘taxes’ imposed by US tech companies on European businesses.
- Harmonise the tax treatment of equity grants. Start-ups often offer their employees ownership of a part of the company, which gives them a strong incentive to help make the company a success. The problem is, each country’s tax authorities treat these grants differently, which makes it complicated for a start-up to make full use of the massive pool of EU talent. A single, simple way to tax equity grants would give the EU’s start-up ecosystem a massive boost and help Europe further establish a true Capital Markets Union.
These areas are priorities both for Klarna, and for European consumers. In a survey of 7,300 Europeans, Klarna found that 2 in 3 were worried about the misuse of AI and a third were worried about the impact of AI on jobs; 4 in 10 Europeans would like more financial services options; and 4 in every 5 Europeans would like more support for European small businesses and start-ups.
“As much as I believe in competition to address market challenges, I’m not an anarchist; there need to be rules and smart policies. In the 1990’s, the Swedish government introduced a policy to make computers accessible to low-income families such as mine and I’m certain that laid the ground for Sweden's vibrant start-up scene,” said Sebastian Siemiatkowski, Co-founder and CEO of Klarna. “However, it's crucial to acknowledge that bad regulation in contrary could stifle this growth and limit choice for consumers, potentially hindering Europe's competitive edge.”
Klarna operates in 20 EU countries and has 100 million customers in the EU. This means that 1 out of every 4 European voters is a Klarna customer. The EU Pink Deal is Klarna’s first manifesto discussing the future of innovation, payments and AI in Europe ahead of the upcoming European elections. Read through the whole manifesto here and visit our elections landing page here.