Klarna revived its long-anticipated New York listing, targeting as much as $1.27 billion in proceeds in a deal that would test investors’ appetite for profitable fintechs after a stop-start year for issuance.
The Stockholm-based “buy now, pay later” firm set a price range of $35 to $37 a share and plans to trade on the NYSE under the ticker “KLAR.” Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley are leading the offering.
The filing follows a spring pause amid tariff-driven market whiplash and comes as risk appetite improves alongside high-profile debuts across tech and crypto. A successful bookbuild would help reset public comps for BNPL names and reduce overhang from Klarna’s volatile private-market marks since its 2021 peak.
Proceeds are slated for general corporate purposes as the company leans into US growth and disciplined underwriting. Investors will likely focus on gross merchandise volume trends, credit losses through the cycle and Klarna’s path to durable margin expansion as interchange and advertising scale.
Legence
Blackstone-backed Legence, an energy-efficient building services platform, launched a US IPO that could raise up to $754 million, valuing the company at as much as $2.95 billion. The San Jose-based operator, whose roots trace back more than a century, plans to sell 26 million shares at $25 to $29, and list on Nasdaq as “LGN,” with Goldman Sachs and Jefferies among underwriters.
The deal offers investors a levered play on secular demand for mission-critical infrastructure in data centers and life sciences, where Legence focuses on HVAC, controls and retrofits to cut energy intensity.
Data-center projects account for roughly 40% of backlog and awards, positioning the company to monetize AI-driven capacity buildouts while benefiting from tightening efficiency standards. For Blackstone, the listing would crystallize value after a roll-up that added regional specialists including A.O. Reed, OCI Associates and P2S. Key diligence items: contract mix and pass-through risk on input costs, free-cash conversion versus peers, and cyclicality in non-data-center end markets.
ekscend Photomask
ekscend Photomask, a Japanese maker of photomasks used in semiconductor fabrication, is preparing a Tokyo listing that could value the business at about ¥300 billion ($2 billion), according to people familiar with the deal. The Toppan Holdings unit is seeking approval from the Tokyo Stock Exchange as early as late September, positioning the float to tap robust capex across leading-edge logic and memory as foundries expand in Japan and the US.
While offering details remain fluid, investors will parse exposure across nodes, customer concentration, and pricing power amid an industry that swings with wafer starts but also benefits from a technological moat and qualification barriers.
The deal would add another chips-adjacent supplier to Japan’s resurgent equity pipeline, as policy tailwinds and supply-chain diversification funnel investment into local ecosystems. Proceeds are expected to support capacity, R&D and potential carve-out costs, while Toppan could retain a strategic stake.
Execution of the deal hinges on book quality from global tech specialists and how issuers balance valuation versus aftermarket performance in choppier rates.
