Klarna Moves Money, Lunar Loads the War Chest, Loomis Rewires the POS | Nordic Fintech Highlights January 2026

January may have looked quiet on the surface, but the Nordic fintech engine was very much running.

In this Nordic Fintech Highlights episode, Ville, Pål and Janne unpack what actually mattered beneath the seasonal slowdown — where peer-to-peer payments, SME banking, and the future of merchant acquiring all collide in very Nordic ways.

On the agenda:

.- Klarna goes P2P. From BNPL to bank to sending money between friends, Klarna steps into an already crowded wallet space — starting closed-loop, with bigger ambitions ahead. We dig into ecosystems, cross-border logic, and why P2P always ends up being about much more than just P2P.

.- Lunar raises €46m and doubles down on SMEs. Fresh capital, sharper focus on business banking, and Moonrise as a platform play. Underserved SMEs return to the spotlight — this time backed by a proper war chest.

.- Loomis Pay and Android POS. Cash heritage meets programmable terminals as Loomis pushes deeper into digital acquiring. We explore why open POS platforms matter, how new payment rails complicate acquiring, and why instant payments still give merchants plenty of operational headaches.

Naturally, the conversation takes a few familiar side roads: embedded finance, platform economics, gig workers, AI agents as future bank customers — and a shared realization that merchant acquiring has become one of the most quietly complicated parts of fintech.

A calm start to the year, a surprisingly busy news cycle, and just enough skepticism to keep everyone honest.

Episode hosted by Pål Krogdahl, Ville Sointu & Janne Salminen

Episode produced and edited by Fintech Daydreaming

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- Pål Krogdahl - https://www.linkedin.com/in/krogdahl/

- Ville Sointu - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ville-sointu-54682b/