SAO PAULO :Nubank, one of the fastest-growing digital lenders in the world, plans to announce an expansion this year after sweeping through its home market Brazil as well as Mexico and Colombia, an executive at the firm said on Thursday, as fourth-quarter profits grew.
The 87 per cent jump in adjusted net profit, boosted by higher revenues and a larger client base, was not enough to lift shares, however, which slid in after-hours trading.
Nubank, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange through Nu Holdings, grew its client base 22 per cent year-on-year to top 114 million customers at the end of December.
Nubank expects to announce its latest market after Brazil, Mexico and Colombia by the end of this year, Jorg Friedemann, Nubank’s director of investor relations, told Reuters in an interview.
“We are not ready yet to make any more specific announcements about where the next geography will be,” he added.
Nubank’s management has been hinting at further expansion for several quarters. Investors and analysts are waiting for more details on timing and location.
Last month, CEO David Velez said that deregulation could make the U.S. banking sector more interesting for new entrants, while noting Europe was not a priority for Nubank.
“2025 will be the year in which we begin to establish the foundations for Nubank to become a technology company that can operate in multiple countries and regions,” Friedemann said.
The Warren Buffett-backed firm on Thursday posted an adjusted net profit of $610 million for the quarter ended in December, above the $567 million estimated by analysts in an LSEG poll.
Still, shares of Nu Holdings were down some 6 per cent in after-hours trading to about $12.55 after results were published.
Revenues rose 50 per cent in the quarter, excluding foreign-exchange effects, to $2.99 billion, below analysts’ estimate of $3.29 billion.
Citi analysts said in a note to clients that their read-through of the results was mostly negative, with key performance indicators on the revenue side “decelerating markedly” and the bank reducing some provisions indicators.
