According to PYMNTS.com, Brazilian fintech giant Nu has won conditional approval for a U.S. national bank charter, a key step in its global expansion. The new entity will be called Nubank, N.A., and it will eventually allow the company to offer deposit accounts, credit cards, lending, and even digital asset custody in the American market. The company, which reported a record $4.2 billion in revenue for Q3 2025 and serves over 127 million customers, must now satisfy specific FDIC and Federal Reserve approvals. It has 12 months to fully capitalize the bank and 18 months to open it. The U.S. operation will be led by co-founder Cristina Junqueira, with former Central Bank of Brazil president Roberto Campos Neto as board chairman, following an initial application submitted on September 30.
Nubank’s Global Gambit
This is a huge, calculated bet. Here’s the thing: Nu is already a behemoth in Latin America. It’s not some scrappy startup looking for its first big break. It’s a publicly-traded, massively profitable company with a proven playbook for digital-first banking. So why the U.S.? CEO David Vélez says it’s about proving the model’s global viability. But let’s be real. It’s also about tapping into the world’s largest, most lucrative financial market. They’re not abandoning Brazil, Mexico, or Colombia, but this is a clear signal that their ambitions are planet-sized. Relocating a co-founder and installing a former central bank chief as chairman? That’s not a side project. That’s a declaration of serious intent.
Shaking Up the U.S. Banking Scene
Now, what does this mean for the competitive landscape? The U.S. already has its digital challengers—Chime, Current, Varo—and its neo-brokers like Robinhood and SoFi getting into banking. But Nubank is a different animal. It’s coming in with the scale and operational experience of serving a population nearly 40% the size of the U.S. They know how to make money on thin-margin, high-volume retail banking. I think the real pressure might not be on the Chimes of the world initially, but on the big, lumbering incumbent banks that still struggle with customer experience. Nubank’s entire brand is built on simplicity, low fees, and a slick app. If they can translate that magic to the U.S., they could peel away customers who are just… tired. Tired of hidden fees, clunky websites, and feeling like an account number.
The Long Regulatory Road Ahead
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. “Conditional approval” is the key phrase. They’ve cleared the OCC, but the FDIC and the Federal Reserve still need to sign off. That’s a whole other gauntlet. And the 18-month clock is ticking. Building a compliant U.S. banking infrastructure from scratch, even for a company this sophisticated, is a monumental task. They’re setting up hubs in Miami, San Francisco, Northern Virginia, and North Carolina—which is a smart, distributed talent strategy. Basically, they’re not putting all their eggs in one basket. Still, the regulatory environment here is a different beast compared to their home turf. It’s going to be their biggest test yet.
A New Breed of Challenger
So who wins and who loses? In the long run, consumers could win if Nubank forces better products and lower prices. The losers are the institutions that refuse to innovate. But Nubank itself is taking a risk. The U.S. market is crowded and customer acquisition costs are high. Can their model, perfected in high-growth emerging markets, work in a saturated, developed economy? That’s the billion-dollar question. One thing’s for sure: the era of digital banking competition is officially global. A Latin American champion is now at the gates, and the American financial industry just got a lot more interesting.
