Nubank Speeds Up Its Global Ambitions With Its Sights Set on the United States; in Mexico, Digital Banking Is Caught Between Inclusion and Regulation
Nubank’s expansion into the United States reignites the debate over fintech competition and raises challenges and opportunities for Mexico’s financial system.
The digital bank Nubank, one of the largest players in mobile banking in Latin America, is on the verge of operating fully in the United States after receiving conditional approval to operate as a bank and now awaiting its final license. Its CEO, David Vélez, attributes part of the regulatory shift that opened the door to new entrants to a more favorable environment during the Donald Trump administration, pointing to lower barriers to entry for new business models and a greater willingness to grant banking licenses.
For Mexico—where Nubank is already present and has added users through savings and credit products—the news matters for two reasons: first, because it validates that a 100% digital model is aiming to compete in the world’s deepest markets; and second, because it puts pressure on local financial systems to modernize faster, especially at a time when households are feeling the cost of borrowing and mid-sized companies continue to report gaps in access to credit.
Nubank reported record revenue of $16.3 billion in 2025, up 45% year over year, supported by regional scale, automation, and a branchless operation. That trajectory has been built on a low-cost offering and a mobile-first experience, but also on a “de-bureaucratizing” banking narrative that resonates in Mexico with a persistent demand: simple products, transparent fees, and faster account opening.
Still, the leap into the United States—the largest financial market in the world—underscores that fintech competition is no longer just regional. If Nubank solidifies funding capabilities, risk management, and regulatory compliance in that market, the bar expected by users and investors in Mexico also rises, especially in areas such as data security, service quality, and the strength of credit models.
Mexico: Financial Inclusion, the Cost of Credit, and Banxico’s Role
The advance of digital banking is taking place in a Mexican context shaped by two simultaneous forces. On one hand, financial inclusion remains an unfinished goal: although access to accounts and digital payment methods has expanded in recent years, gaps persist in rural areas and among informal workers. On the other, the cost of money stayed high following the restrictive cycle by the Bank of Mexico, which made credit cards, personal loans, and financing for small businesses more expensive. In that environment, digital banks are trying to grow by capturing underserved segments with faster origination models and heavier use of analytics, but they face the challenge of managing delinquency and avoiding over-indebtedness when household disposable income is squeezed by services inflation and uneven wage adjustments across sectors.
In Mexico, Banxico has maintained inflation convergence as a priority, and while the path of interest rates may change as inflation evolves, consumer credit typically reacts with a lag. For banks and fintechs, this means balancing growth with prudence: the appetite to expand loan portfolios can clash with deteriorating indicators in segments sensitive to employment and income. At the same time, the adoption of digital payments and instant transfers has raised expectations for 24/7 availability and efficient service—an area where digital-native players compete with an advantage.
AI in Financial Services: Efficiency vs. Operational Risk
Vélez positions Artificial Intelligence as a pillar for personalizing products, automating processes, and lowering service costs, even for older users. In the Mexican market, that could translate into faster credit origination, quicker customer support, and offers better tailored to spending profiles. But it also opens up a new set of risks: data protection, model bias, and automated decisions that are difficult to audit. In banking, any recommendation or action derived from algorithms must align with applicable regulation and market-conduct standards. In addition, the industry itself recognizes that models can “hallucinate” or fail—something that becomes a reputational risk in finance and potentially a systemic one if it scales.
The discussion is significant for Mexico, where digitization is advancing faster than financial literacy. The challenge will be ensuring innovation doesn’t translate into opacity: that users understand costs, risks, credit limits, and complaint mechanisms, and that authorities can oversee practices without stifling competition.
In perspective, Nubank’s push into the United States confirms that Latin American digital banking wants to play in the global big leagues and, at the same time, raises competitive expectations in Mexico. The opportunity lies in accelerating inclusion and efficiency; the risk is that the race to grow outpaces data governance, credit quality, and the regulatory framework needed to sustain confidence in the system.
