NU vs PAGS: How Nu Holdings and PagSeguro Digital Compare (2026)

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: PAGS is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. NU and PAGS share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined NU and PAGS exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Nu Holdings is the parent of Nubank, a digital bank built entirely around a mobile app rather than branches. It earns money the way a bank does: net interest income from credit cards and personal loans, plus fees and interchange, increasingly funded by a large, low-cost deposit base. By March 2026 deposits had grown roughly 29% year over year to nearly $42 billion and the loan book had passed $30 billion, while the company kept its cost structure unusually lean, reporting an efficiency ratio under 18%. Growth comes from two levers stacked together: signing up new customers (over 135 million globally, with Brazil past ~115 million, Mexico past ~15 million, and Colombia approaching ~5 million) and raising how much each customer transacts and borrows over time.

Full NU guide

PagSeguro Digital operates in Brazil under the PagBank brand. The original business was merchant acquiring: selling Moderninha and Minizinha card terminals to micro-merchants, individual entrepreneurs and small companies that the incumbent banks would not underwrite, then earning a spread on the transactions and on prepaying receivables. That is still the volume engine, with total payment volume around ~R$128 billion in the first quarter of 2026. The faster-growing half is banking. PagBank issues accounts, cards, payroll loans, secured credit and investment products to both merchants and consumers, and it funds itself mostly from its own customers: total deposits reached ~R$42 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up ~23% year over year, with roughly 91% sourced on-platform. Banking revenue grew ~41% year over year in that quarter while payments revenue was close to flat, which is the clearest statement of where the company is heading.

Full PAGS guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• NU drivers: Customer growth still compounding; Monetizing the existing base.
• PAGS drivers: Deposits and banking revenue outgrowing payments; Credit as the third growth leg.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: The dominant risk is the consumer credit cycle. For PAGS, competition is the central risk and it comes from four directions at once: Mercado Pago, Nubank, StoneCo and the incumbent Brazilian banks (Itau, Bradesco, Santander Brasil, Banco do Brasil), all chasing the same merchants and deposits.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick NU if you believe its drivers more; PAGS if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the NU and PAGS guides.

NU. Figures are approximate and tied to the asOf date; verify live numbers before acting. NU trades at a premium to traditional banks on a P/E basis, which reflects its growth and high returns on equity rather than incumbent-bank multiples. The valuation already embeds continued customer growth and contained credit losses, so the figures matter most as a gauge of how much optimism is priced in.

PAGS. Reporting currency is the Brazilian real, so headline growth in reais and the dollar return on the NYSE line can diverge sharply. First-quarter 2026 net revenue was ~R$5.0 billion, up ~6.3% year over year, with net income of ~R$546 million and non-GAAP EPS up about ~12%, helped by the shrinking share count. The ~6x multiple is not a screening artifact: it reflects a market that expects fee compression from Pix and treats the credit book as unproven, and Q2 2026 results due August 13, 2026 are the next test of the easing-Selic thesis.

Headline figures (approximate, 2026-06-26): NU shows revenue (q1 2026 quarterly) ~$5.0 billion, a record single quarter, customers ~135 million+ across Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, net income (q1 2026) ~$871 million, a record first quarter, return on equity ~high-20s to ~30% (historical range); PAGS shows revenue (ttm, total revenue and income) ~R$20 billion (~$3.7 billion), net income (ttm) ~R$2.2 billion (~$400 million), market capitalization ~$3 billion, p/e (trailing) ~6x.

NU and PAGS are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined NU and PAGS exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.