Klarna packs up Inspirock

The Future. Klarna is buying travel company Inspirock to create an all-in-one platform for vacation curation and commerce. With online booking a largely fractured process, Klarna may become the go-to digital concierge service for the average traveler.

Bank a travel agent
Financial services startup is getting into the travel business.

• It’s acquiring online trip planner Inspirock for an undisclosed amount.
• Inspirock, which has 25 million users, helps travelers plan trips based on their interests through both AI and local experts.

The platform plans on using the company to help “local retailers and merchants with that trip planning experience so that consumers can have an easier time planning what they want to do during the visit and actually experience a city.”

Klarna already has 250,000 of its own retail partners.

Pay plans
Klarna’s “Pay in 4” feature will probably be a key part of its plans with Inspirock. Vacations are expensive, and Klarna has the infrastructure to make paying for them a little easier on the wallet while housing planning is all under the same roof. It could make Klarna the new one-stop-shop for all travel needs, including attractions and events.

Travel represents a huge opportunity for the company. The online travel market (which represents 66% of all travel bookings) is expected to ascend to $833.5 billion by 2025 (bye, bye, COVID).