Startups Turning Employees Into Founders

Startup Feature
Turning Pay Later Into Pay Smarter

At Klarna, three employees spent years building one of Europe’s most valuable fintechs. But what they saw behind the curtain raised concerns. They watched as users fell into high-interest debt, often refinancing one payment with another. In 2017, they decided to leave and build something different.

Their new startup, Anyfin, focuses on helping consumers refinance existing loans and credit cards to lower their interest rates. Today the startup is backed more than $100 million dollars in funding with a mission to help people get out of debt, not into it.

From Klarna to Anyfin

Anyfin was founded by Mikael Hussain, Filip Polhem and Sven Perkmann after years working in product, risk and engineering roles at Klarna. They left the company with a shared goal to shift the power dynamic in consumer finance back toward the borrower.

Rather than encouraging spending through easy credit, Anyfin helps users reduce it. The app uses open banking data to scan and evaluate existing loans, then offers to refinance them at lower rates. For users struggling with expensive instalment plans or credit cards, the promise is simple.

What began as a single product in Sweden has since expanded across Germany, Norway and Finland. The startup now offers savings tools, budgeting features and a pay tracker that helps users avoid overdraft cycles. Anyfin reports that it can reduce customers’ interest rates by as much as 50 percent on refinanced credit.

A Different Approach to Consumer Credit

The idea has resonated. Anyfin has raised over 100 million dollars and expanded its team to more than 160 people. In 2023, it launched a credit builder product aimed at younger users in Germany and began working on embedded financial tools for employers.

Its Series C round included investment from Citi Ventures, a sign that even large institutions see value in responsible lending models.

The shift from Klarna’s business model to Anyfin’s is more than just a pivot. It highlights growing demand for consumer-first financial products in Europe. Rather than selling credit as convenience, Anyfin has built a business around helping people move away from it.

As economic pressure mounts and debt levels climb across Europe, Anyfin is betting that less borrowing can be a valuable business that solves a core problem among newer generations with higher spending habits.