Nubank Secures Approval to Establish U.S. National Bank
Nubank Gets Conditional Approval to Launch a U.S. National Bank
Nubank received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a de novo national bank, Nubank, N.A. The authorization marks a formal regulatory step toward creating a federally supervised banking entity in the United States and supports the company’s plan to introduce core financial products under a national charter. Final approval remains subject to additional regulatory conditions and clearances from other U.S. authorities.
Key Highlights
Conditional OCC authorization obtained: The company has been permitted to begin organizing a new national bank in the U.S., a process that requires compliance with detailed supervisory and operational conditions before full approval is granted.
Broader product scope enabled: Once fully licensed, the charter would allow the institution to offer deposit accounts, credit cards, lending products, and digital asset custody within a unified federal regulatory framework.
Regulatory organization phase initiated: The firm must now complete the bank formation stage, including meeting OCC requirements, securing approvals from the FDIC and the Federal Reserve, and capitalizing the institution within a 12-month period.
Timeline defined by regulators: Under the approval terms, the bank is expected to be operational within 18 months after capitalization, provided all supervisory milestones are met.
Application formally filed in 2025: The OCC application for the national bank charter was submitted on September 30, 2025, initiating the current review and approval process.
U.S. operational hubs planned: The approval aligns with previously outlined plans to establish strategic presence across multiple U.S. locations, including Miami, Northern Virginia, North Carolina’s Research Triangle, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Continued multi-jurisdiction compliance: The U.S. approval follows similar regulatory progress in other markets, including Mexico, where a subsidiary Nu Mexico - has received authorization from Comisión Nacional Bancaria y de Valores (CNBV) in April 2025 to organize as a banking institution and is awaiting final operational clearance.
Nubank’s Journey and Future Outlook
Founded in 2013 in São Paulo, Nubank has grown from a single-product digital bank into a large financial services platform serving more than 127 million customers across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. In its home market of Brazil, the company has become the largest private financial institution by number of customers and operates as a fully regulated entity since 2016. Nubank has also been publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange since 2021 under the ticker symbol NU.
The organization has also outlined plans to pursue a full banking license in Brazil in 2026, reflecting its continued shift toward comprehensive regulatory frameworks.
