Nu Holdings Ltd., the leading digital bank in Latin America, announced it has filed for a U.S. national bank charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The filing marks an initial step toward expanding the company's operations across all 50 states.
Approval from the OCC is expected to take years and will involve scrutiny of management, financials, compliance, and operational readiness. The company's strong balance sheet, regulatory experience in three countries, and leadership team that includes former OCC and central bank executives are seen as factors in its favor.
If approved, the charter would allow Nu to issue credit and debit cards, loans, and other financial products in the United States. Taking deposits would require additional licensing from the FDIC, which the company may pursue through partnerships with FDIC-insured banks.
Nu's expansion strategy is modeled on its approach in Latin America. It plans to offer no-fee accounts, competitive credit cards, high deposit interest rates, loans, investment products, crypto services, and low-cost remittances. The company aims to serve an estimated 5 million unbanked adults and tens of millions of low-income Americans, a total addressable market of roughly 60 million people.
The company leverages cloud-based infrastructure, artificial intelligence, and automation, which it says provides a structural cost advantage over traditional U.S. banks. This enables scalable, low-cost operations.
Ray Myers, who published a bullish thesis on Nu Holdings in May 2025, has emphasized the company's U.S. expansion plans via the national bank charter. The stock has appreciated approximately 29.77% since that thesis was published. As of January 12, Nu Holdings' share was trading at $17.04. According to Yahoo Finance, its trailing and forward P/E ratios were 33.03 and 21.23, respectively.
At the end of the second quarter, 97 hedge fund portfolios held Nu Holdings, an increase from 80 in the previous quarter.