For context, read this profile alongside the neobank overview and the financial-licensing map. It is a case study in a licensed or partner-bank business model, not a product recommendation. Primary source: OCC charter decision.
A banking licence of one's own in the US long remained an unattainable dream for foreign fintechs: applications sat at the OCC for years and quietly died. In 2026 the door opened — and the first of the global giants through it was Nubank, Latin America's largest digital bank: on January 29, 2026 the OCC granted conditional approval for a de novo national bank charter for Nubank, N.A.
For a client with Latin American ties this is a future US bank with familiar DNA. For anyone building a financial structure of their own it is a fresh precedent: a foreign group obtaining a full federal charter from scratch, and in 121 days from the date of filing.
Background
Nubank was founded in São Paulo in 2013 by the Colombian David Vélez, an alumnus of Sequoia Capital, the Brazilian Cristina Junqueira and the American engineer Edward Wible. The idea grew out of Vélez's personal frustration: to open an account at a Brazilian bank he had to pass through bulletproof doors and armed guards, then wait almost five months for a decision. At the same time five banks controlled ≈80% of the market and lived off prohibitive fees — a perfect target for a digital attacker.
The launch product was a purple credit card with no annual fee, managed entirely from the app. Then came the conveyor belt: the NuConta account (2017), personal loans, entries into Mexico (2019) and Colombia (2020), and the acquisition of the largest digital broker, Easynvest in September 2020 — later rebranded NuInvest, and today the group's investment platforms carry over 5m active investors. In 2021 the premium Ultravioleta segment was added along with a $500m cheque from Berkshire Hathaway; in December 2021 Nu Holdings listed on the NYSE under the ticker NU. As of August 2026 its market capitalisation is ≈$70bn — the level of large US regional banks.
The scale is captured by the first-quarter 2026 report: over 135m customers (115m+ in Brazil, 15m+ in Mexico, ≈5m in Colombia), quarterly revenue past $5bn for the first time, net profit of $871m (up 41% year on year) and ROE of 29%. In absolute profit that makes it the most profitable neobank in the world — and one of the cheapest to run: an efficiency ratio of 17.6% against 19.9% the previous quarter.
Products and pricing
The Latin American line-up is built on a free base plus credit margin model. The card and the account are free: no annual fee and no maintenance charge, and in Brazil the balance earns a yield at the CDI rate (the local overnight benchmark). The bank makes its money on the credit portfolio — $37.2bn as of the first quarter of 2026: $24.3bn in card limits, ≈$10bn in unsecured loans and $3bn in secured lending.
The unit economics are textbook. Average monthly revenue per active customer (ARPAC) is ≈$16 with 83% of the base active; the group has historically kept the cost to serve below $1 per customer per month. Deposits of $42.4bn cost 88% of the interbank rate — cheap funding plus a service costing pennies is exactly what produces that $871m of quarterly profit.
The premium layer is Ultravioleta: as of August 2026 the subscription costs R$89 a month for new customers (R$49 for long-standing ones) and is waived on spending from R$8,000 a month or from R$50,000 in investments inside the ecosystem. Inside it: 1.25% instant cashback or 2.2 points per dollar spent, four Priority Pass visits a year, zero IOF on international purchases and a multi-currency account on Wise infrastructure.
In Mexico the money lives in the Cuenta Nu and in cajitas — savings pots of varying maturity. Since January 5, 2026 the basic cajitas pay ≈7% a year and the Cajita Turbo pays 13% (15% before the revision): the rates are pegged to the interbank TIIE, which has fallen to 7%. In Colombia the movement runs the other way: since February 6, 2026 cajitas pay 8.75% E.A. and CDTs up to 10.50%, following a rate rise by the Banco de la República.
Crypto has long been proven inside the ecosystem: BTC and ETH trading launched in May 2022 in partnership with Paxos and gathered a million users in the first month. The US line-up has so far been announced only in outline: deposit accounts, credit cards, lending and digital-asset custody. Pricing has not been published; the group's logic can be read off the LatAm template — free entry, an earning balance, monetisation through credit.
Competitive landscape
The Latin American diaspora in the US is already served by niche players. Comun onboards on about a hundred kinds of Latin American document, including foreign passports, with no SSN and no US credit history; Majority, for a subscription of $5.99 a month, opens an account on a passport or matrícula consular through partner Axiom Bank, adding transfers and international calling.
A floor above are the mass-market neobanks. Chime had 10.2m active customers by the first quarter of 2026 and posted its first profitable quarter; on March 5, 2026 Revolut filed its own charter application for Revolut Bank US, N.A. and named Cetin Duransoy US CEO. None of them holds an operating national charter — Nubank is running first in this race.
Nubank's trump cards: a brand familiar to almost every adult Brazilian and Mexican, a charter of its own instead of a partner bank, and experience in credit-scoring people with no file at the bureaus. The bet on remittances is equally obvious: the US-Mexico corridor delivered a record $64.7bn to recipients in 2024 and, even after a 4.6% decline in 2025, remains the largest bilateral corridor in the world.
What it means for the client
Nubank grew up onboarding people whom traditional banks served reluctantly: migrants, freelancers, customers with no credit history. That DNA makes the future Nubank, N.A. an obvious candidate for clients with LatAm ties — from a family with a business in Brazil to relocated employees earning in two currencies. The group names as its starting audience people from Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, and beyond them the entire Hispanic market in the US.
Onboarding requirements have not been published; the main practical question is whether the bank will accept a passport or an ITIN instead of an SSN, as the niche competitors do. A separate advantage of holding its own charter: deposits will be FDIC-insured directly, without the pass-through arrangements through a partner bank on which fintech apps run. Worth watching: the opening line-up, the terms for newcomers without US credit history, and whether a cheap remittance corridor to Brazil and Mexico appears.
Under the hood
The key decision is de novo rather than buying a ready-made bank. A purchase delivers a licence quickly but drags along someone else's balance sheet and integration hell; a charter from scratch means the OCC's capital conditions and a detailed business plan, and in exchange full control over the stack and the risks. The timeline is exemplary: the application was filed on September 30, 2025 and conditional approval came on January 29, 2026 — 121 days in total, under Comptroller Jonathan Gould; previously foreign groups sat in limbo for years.
The conditions of approval are public: full capitalisation within 12 months and opening within 18. The US business is headed by co-founder Cristina Junqueira, who has moved to the US, and the board includes Roberto Campos Neto, the former president of Brazil's central bank. The hubs are laid out by function: Miami as the shop window for the Latin American audience, the Bay Area with engineers from acquired startups (including the AI company Hyperplane), Northern Virginia close to the regulators, and Research Triangle in North Carolina.
The economics of the entry are conservative: the group has promised to keep US costs within 100 basis points of the consolidated efficiency ratio in 2026–2027 and to expand only after confirmed product-market fit. For a builder this is a ready-made template: a federal de novo without an acquisition, a measurable budget, a phased launch.
Regulation and status
Milestone number one: conditional approval from the OCC on January 29, 2026 for the Nubank, N.A. national charter; this is the largest foreign neobank to obtain a US de novo in the current wave. To open, the bank still needs FDIC deposit insurance and Federal Reserve approval — both processes are ongoing as of August 2026.
The backdrop is favourable: over 2025 the OCC collected as many charter applications as in the previous four years combined, and under Gould decisions arrive within months. In parallel, regulators have reopened the path to crypto custody for national banks and publicly acknowledged the debanking problem facing crypto companies — Nubank's plans for digital-asset services are legally viable.
FAQ
What is a de novo charter and why is it better than buying a bank?
De novo means creating a new bank from a blank sheet on application to the OCC. The group gains full control over the business model and the technology; in exchange it accepts the regulator's capital conditions — for Nubank, full capitalisation within 12 months and opening within 18.
When will Nubank actually open to customers in the US?
There is no firm date: conditional approval came on January 29, 2026, and FDIC insurance and Fed approval lie ahead. Under the OCC's conditions the bank must open within 18 months of approval, so the working reference point is by mid-2027.
Will it be possible to open an account without an SSN?
Nubank has not yet published official requirements. The niche competitors show the problem is solvable: Comun accepts ≈100 kinds of Latin American document, and Majority opens an account on a passport or matrícula consular. Nubank names the diaspora as its starting audience, so soft onboarding is the logical expectation — until launch it remains a hypothesis.
Who will the future Nubank, N.A. appeal to first?
Clients with Latin American ties: families with a business in Brazil, Mexico or Colombia, diaspora money, relocators. A separate plus is the expected soft onboarding for people without US credit history, the group's signature specialisation.
What do Nubank's products cost today?
In Latin America the base is free: a card with no annual fee, an account with no charges and a yield at the CDI rate. As of August 2026 Ultravioleta costs R$89 a month for new customers and is waived on spending from R$8,000. In Mexico cajitas pay ≈7–13% a year (January 2026), and in Colombia 8.75% E.A. with CDTs up to 10.50% (February 2026).