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Viktor Jacobsson

Born 1981 · Age 44

Swedish entrepreneur and co‑founder of Klarna (2005). Creative director with global agency experience; has remained an active investor in Klarna via secondary purchases and SPVs, retaining a multi‑hundred‑million to billion‑dollar stake.

Total Events
28
Career Span
44 years
Peak Net Worth
$1,350,000,000

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Life & Career Timeline

1981Age 0

Birth of Viktor Jacobsson

Born in Sweden (birth date 28 Aug 1981).

8/28/1981Source
Confidence
100%
2004Age 23

Earned Master of Science, Stockholm School of Economics (estimate)

Completed Master of Science at the Stockholm School of Economics (education listed; graduation year estimated based on birth year and career timeline).

1/1/2004Source
Confidence
35%
2005Age 24

Co‑founded Klarna

Co‑founded Klarna in Stockholm; company pioneered the 'buy now, pay later' model for e‑commerce.

1/1/2005Source
Confidence
99%
2005Age 24

Klarna pioneering 'buy now, pay later' model

Klarna established itself as a buy‑now, pay‑later (BNPL) payments provider, offering payment processing and customer payments handling for online stores.

1/1/2005Source
Confidence
95%
2006Age 25

Began/expanded global creative career

Began or expanded a global creative leadership career working with major brands and agencies (profile cites work for Apple, Nike, Google, and others across Stockholm, London, New York and Los Angeles). Year estimated based on '18 years experience' note.

1/1/2006Source
Confidence
40%
2012Age 31

Departed Klarna (left operational role)

Left day‑to‑day role at Klarna in 2012 but retained an ownership stake and rights related to secondary share purchases.

1/1/2012Source
Confidence
95%
2012Age 31

Transition to creative and agency roles

After leaving Klarna, focused on creative leadership positions and agency work across major global markets (Stockholm, London, New York, Los Angeles).

1/1/2012Source
Confidence
70%
2016Age 35

Recognized as established creative leader (approx.)

By the mid‑2010s Jacobsson was an experienced creative director working with global brands (timing estimated from later '18 years experience' citation).

1/1/2016Source
Confidence
35%
2018Age 37

Klarna gains major public attention (context)

Klarna grew into a major fintech challenger by this period; media profile pieces on Klarna executives and strategy increased (contextual milestone for founder network).

1/1/2018Source
Confidence
40%
2021Age 40

Klarna handled ~US$80 billion in online sales

Klarna reported processing approximately US$80 billion in online sales in 2021, demonstrating major scale of the business.

1/1/2021Source
Confidence
95%
2021Age 40

Klarna peak valuation (~$45.6B)

Klarna's peak reported valuation was approximately $45.6 billion in 2021 (Wikipedia citation).

1/1/2021Source
Confidence
85%
2021Age 39

Klarna raised $1 billion at $31 billion valuation

Klarna raised $1 billion in new funding at a reported $31 billion valuation (press coverage Mar 1, 2021). The raise created billionaires among two of the three co‑founders per coverage.

3/1/2021Net Worth: $900,000,000Source
Confidence
60%
2022Age 41

Private investors valued Klarna at $6.7 billion

Private secondary transactions or investor marks in 2022 placed a $6.7B valuation on Klarna per reporting.

1/1/2022Source
Confidence
90%
2022Age 41

Reported retained stake ~9% (estimated)

Sources report Jacobsson retained roughly a 9% stake in Klarna. At a $6.7B valuation this stake would be worth ~US$603M.

1/1/2022Net Worth: $603,000,000Source
Confidence
70%
2023Age 42

Continued creative leadership; joined Uber as Creative Director (profiled)

Profiles list Viktor Jacobsson as Creative Director at Uber based in Amsterdam; previously worked across Stockholm, London, New York and Los Angeles. (Listed as 'currently works at Uber' on Cannes Lions profile; year assigned as recent.)

1/1/2023Net Worth: $650,000,000Source
Confidence
70%
2024Age 43

Klarna operational scale: 90M customers, 200k merchants, 1M transactions/day

Report cited Klarna with approximately 90 million customers, over 200,000 merchants and at least 1,000,000 transactions per day (figures reported in coverage of Klarna's growth).

1/1/2024Source
Confidence
80%
2024Age 42

Profiled as one of Klarna's largest shareholders; stake accumulation scrutinized

Reporting highlighted Jacobsson as one of the largest shareholders in Klarna ahead of an IPO, and discussed how his shares are held via multiple corporate entities and SPVs.

1/1/2024Net Worth: $800,000,000Source
Confidence
70%
2024Age 42

Reported corporate governance tensions at Klarna

Coverage noted tensions when Sequoia (22% owner) failed to remove former leader Michael Moritz as chair, highlighting governance issues including 'special voting rights' and 'shadow governance structures'. Jacobsson's holdings and voting arrangements were part of the scrutiny.

1/1/2024Source
Confidence
70%
2024Age 42

Klarna described as a fully licensed bank in Europe

Reports describe Klarna as a fully licensed bank in Europe offering checking accounts, savings and debit cards (milestone for the company; no precise licensing date provided in the text).

1/1/2024Source
Confidence
60%
2024Age 42

Public report: strategic investments in Klarna via SPVs

Sigma reported Jacobsson has quietly been amassing a significant stake in Klarna through special purpose vehicles, using rights of first refusal to buy secondary shares ahead of an expected IPO.

3/10/2024Net Worth: $750,000,000Source
Confidence
75%
2025Age 44

Ongoing secondary share purchases via SPVs (multi‑year activity)

Reporting indicates Jacobsson used rights of first refusal and special purpose vehicles over multiple years to accumulate shares on the secondary market; exact dates/transactions are opaque because holdings are through corporate entities.

1/1/2025Net Worth: $1,190,000,000Source
Confidence
70%
2025Age 44

Investors in Klarna named in reporting

Public reporting lists major investors in Klarna including Sequoia Capital, Dragoneer, Silver Lake, Bestseller Group, Visa and Ant Group (contextual milestone for investor base).

1/1/2025Source
Confidence
90%
2025Age 44

Reported potential stake value if IPO at $15B (estimate)

If Jacobsson held ~9% going into a $15B IPO, that stake would be worth ~US$1.35B—an estimate used to contextualize his potential net worth at the planned IPO valuation.

1/1/2025Net Worth: $1,350,000,000Source
Confidence
45%
2025Age 44

Public recognition: Cannes Lions jury profile

Cannes Lions publishes a profile stating Viktor Jacobsson is an award‑winning creative leader with global experience and lists him as Creative Director at Uber (the profile reflects industry recognition and juror/awards involvement).

1/1/2025Net Worth: $1,190,000,000Source
Confidence
80%
2025Age 44

Klarna employee count (major company milestone)

Klarna reported having more than 5,000 employees, with headquarters in Stockholm and offices including Berlin (company scale milestone).

1/1/2025Source
Confidence
85%
2025Age 43

IPO filing delayed (April 2025)

Klarna delayed its planned April 2025 US IPO filing; reporting attributes the delay to the 2025 United States trade war with Canada and Mexico (per the provided text).

4/1/2025Net Worth: $1,200,000,000Source
Confidence
55%
2025Age 43

Planned American IPO filing (April 2025) at projected $15B valuation

Klarna initially planned to file for an American IPO in April 2025 with a projected valuation of $15 billion (roughly one‑third of its 2021 peak).

4/1/2025Net Worth: $1,350,000,000Source
Confidence
60%
2025Age 44

Real‑time net worth estimate published: $1.19B (08/16/2025)

RealtimeBillionaires profile lists Viktor Jacobsson's net worth at approximately $1.19 billion as of August 16, 2025.

8/16/2025Net Worth: $1,190,000,000Source
Confidence
90%

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