Nubank secures $650m credit line to boost international growth
Brazilian digital bank Nubank has obtained a credit line worth $650 million as it looks to boost its growth in Mexico and Colombia.
NuBank secures $650m credit line
The funds come from a three-year local currency line of credit financed by multinational financial services giants Morgan Stanley, Citi, Goldman Sachs and HSBC.
These institutions also acted as underwriters for Nubank’s December 2021 Initial Public Offering (IPO), in which the fintech raised approximately $2.8 billion.
Nubank CEO and founder David Vélez says: “We are redoubling our commitment in Mexico and Colombia to continue growing and generating a positive local impact through the financial inclusion of millions of Latin Americans.”
The funding will be funnelled towards three main areas: technology and product development, expanding the firm’s customer base and hiring new talent.
Mexico and Colombia, along with Brazil, represent 60% of Latin America’s GDP and population, Nubank says, and are therefore “extremely strategic” markets for the company.
Nubank, known as Nu in Mexico and Colombia, has been issuing credit cards in Mexico since 2020 and now has 1.4 million customers as of EOY 2021. In contrast, Nu has 114,000 customers in Colombia, an increase of 3x over Q4 2021.
The fintech is building an engineering, product and data science hub in Colombia with a view to nurturing the next generation of financial services in the country.
General manager of Nu Colombia Catalina Bretón says: “We have grown at an intense pace and this regional credit facility allows us to continue advancing more quickly in our objective of fighting bureaucracy to empower our customers.”
Nu Mexico general manager Emilio González adds: “This funding confirms our long-term commitment to Mexico and will allow us to offer our products to many millions more people.”
Founded in 2013 in Brazil, Nubank launched in Mexico in 2019 and later in Colombia in 2020. It has approximately 54 million customers and is the largest credit card issuer in Mexico.
