Nubank, the Brazilian fintech backed by China’s Tencent Holdings, secured a loan of up to USD 150 million from the International Finance Corp, the private lending arm of the World Bank, to grow its business in Latin America.
The move is part of a strategy by Latin America’s largest fintech to quickly establish itself in some of the region’s key markets.
Nubank said in a statement that the loan has a three-year maturity and will be used to expand access to financial services in Colombia, especially among women and minority groups.
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“The loan is in line with Nubank’s strategy to become the leading digital financial services company in Colombia,” the company said.
As well as growing competition, an increasing number of investors are asking how Nubank, which has backing from Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N), China’s Tencent Holdings and venture capital investors such as Sequoia Capital, is going to monetize its giant client base.
Overseas interest in Brazil includes JPMorgan (JPM.N) in June acquiring a 40% stake in digital lender C6 Bank, with more than 12 million clients, private equity firm General Atlantic financing two capital increases in Neon since 2019, while Japan’s SoftBank (9984.T) has a 15% stake in Banco Inter .
