Is NU a Buy? What to Consider in 2026
Short answer
The bull case for Nu Holdings (NU) rests on Customer growth still compounding: Nu added roughly 4 million customers in Q1 2026 to surpass 135 million, and it is now the largest private financial institution in Brazil. Revenue (Q1 2026 quarterly) is ~$5.0 billion, a record single quarter. If you believe that thesis holds, the real questions become position sizing and overlap, not timing. The main risk to that view: The dominant risk is the consumer credit cycle. Whether NU is a buy comes down to whether you believe the thesis. This is informational, not a recommendation, and 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. The company was founded in 2013 by David Velez, a Colombian-born former venture investor, alongside Cristina Junqueira and Edward Wible, after Velez grew frustrated with Brazil's concentrated, high-fee incumbent banks. Its first product was a no-fee, app-managed purple credit card, and it expanded from there into accounts, lending, insurance, investments, and crypto access. Nu listed on the NYSE in December 2021 at roughly a $45 billion valuation. David Velez remains chief executive and the company's defining figure. Berkshire Hathaway, an early backer that bought in around the IPO, fully exited its position in 2025, a frequently cited data point but not a verdict on the underlying business.
What's the case for buying NU?
Customer growth still compounding
Nu added roughly 4 million customers in Q1 2026 to surpass 135 million, and it is now the largest private financial institution in Brazil. The base keeps growing in the low-teens-percent range even at scale. Each new customer is a long runway, because banking relationships deepen over years rather than quarters.
Monetizing the existing base
Beyond adding accounts, the bigger lever is selling more to people already on the platform: credit, personal loans, insurance, and investments layered onto a free starter account. The loan-to-deposit ratio rose to ~58% in Q1 2026 from under 50% a year earlier, signaling more of that cheap deposit base being put to work in higher-yielding credit. Revenue per active customer trending up is the core of the profit story.
Mexico and Colombia expansion
Mexico passed ~15 million customers and is now a top-three financial institution there, with credit balances up roughly 61% year over year, replicating the Brazil playbook faster. Colombia is approaching ~5 million. Management frames the two newer markets as a diversifying shield that reduces reliance on Brazil, though both are still early and consume investment before they contribute meaningful profit.
Operating leverage and profitability
Nu pairs an efficiency ratio under 18% with returns on equity historically in the high-20s to ~30% range, rare for a bank of its growth rate. Q1 2026 net income reached ~$871 million, a record first quarter. If the cost discipline holds as revenue scales, incremental dollars fall to the bottom line at a high rate.
What are the risks to NU?
The dominant risk is the consumer credit cycle. Most of Nu's profit comes from unsecured lending in Brazil and Mexico, where inflation, currency moves, or a slowdown can push delinquencies up and force larger loan-loss provisions; 90-day-plus non-performing loans sat around 6.5% in Q1 2026, off a prior peak but still meaningful. Brazil's high Selic rate raises funding costs and has not fully repriced across the book. Because results report in US dollars, a weaker Brazilian real or Mexican peso drags reported revenue and earnings. Competition is intensifying as incumbents modernize and new neobanks enter, which can lift acquisition costs and pressure fees, and tighter fintech regulation across the region adds uncertainty.
How is NU valued? (as of 2026-06-26)
- 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)
- P/E ratio: ~19x
- Market cap: ~$64 billion (stock ~$13 per share)
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.
How do you decide if NU is a buy?
Rather than asking whether NU is a buy in the abstract, it tends to help to answer four questions:
- Thesis: do you believe the case above, and is it still true today?
- Time horizon: a single stock can be volatile, so a longer horizon absorbs more of the swings.
- Position sizing: a thesis can be right and the sizing still wrong; decide how much of your portfolio one name should be.
- Overlap: check whether you already hold NU indirectly through an index or sector ETF before adding more.
For the full picture, see the NU stock guide (what the company does, the ETFs that hold it, similar stocks, and the themes it fits). In Walnut you can ask its AI about NU against your real portfolio and see your actual exposure before deciding.
The bottom line on NU
The bottom line: Nu Holdings's story right now is Customer growth still compounding, with revenue (q1 2026 quarterly) at ~$5.0 billion, a record single quarter. If you believe that narrative continues, the call is about sizing NU sensibly and checking overlap with what you own; if you doubt it (the risk: the dominant risk is the consumer credit cycle.), it is not for you. Decide from the thesis, not the ticker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
Build a basket around NU with Walnut
Use Nu Holdings as one constituent in a thematic basket Walnut's AI helps you assemble. Describe a thesis you believe in, the AI proposes the holdings and weights, and you approve before any broker order.
FAQ
Is NU a good stock to buy right now?
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The case for Nu Holdings right now is Customer growth still compounding, with revenue (q1 2026 quarterly) at ~$5.0 billion, a record single quarter. If you believe that thesis holds, NU is a way to own it and the real questions are sizing and overlap, not timing; the main risk to that view is the dominant risk is the consumer credit cycle. So it comes down to whether you believe the thesis. Walnut is not an investment adviser and this is not a recommendation.
What does Nu Holdings do?
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Nu Holdings is the parent of Nubank, a digital bank built entirely around a mobile app rather than branches.
What are the main risks of NU?
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The dominant risk is the consumer credit cycle. Most of Nu's profit comes from unsecured lending in Brazil and Mexico, where inflation, currency moves, or a slowdown can push delinquencies up and force larger loan-loss provisions; 90-day-plus non-performing loans sat around 6.5% in Q1 2026, off a prior peak but still meaningful. Brazil's high Selic rate raises funding costs and has not fully repriced across the book. Because results report in US dollars, a weaker Brazilian real or Mexican peso drags reported revenue and earnings. Competition is intensifying as incumbents modernize and new neobanks enter, which can lift acquisition costs and pressure fees, and tighter fintech regulation across the region adds uncertainty.
Is NU a good stock to buy right now?
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That depends on your goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance, and this is not investment advice. The bull case is durable customer growth, rising monetization, and high returns on equity at a reasonable bank multiple. The bear case is heavy reliance on unsecured Latin American consumer credit, currency drag on US-dollar results, and a premium valuation. Weigh both against your own portfolio and overlap.
What is Nubank?
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Nubank is the digital bank operated by Nu Holdings, run almost entirely through a mobile app rather than physical branches. It offers no-fee accounts, credit cards, personal loans, insurance, investments, and crypto access, and serves more than 135 million customers across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. It is one of Latin America's largest financial institutions by customer count.
Does NU pay a dividend?
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Nu Holdings does not pay a regular dividend. Like most high-growth companies, it reinvests profits into customer acquisition, lending, and expansion in Mexico and Colombia rather than returning cash to shareholders. Any return from NU would come from share-price appreciation rather than income, which matters if you are building a portfolio for current yield.
How can I get exposure to Nu Holdings through an ETF?
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NU appears in many broad funds, especially emerging-market and Brazil-focused ETFs such as iShares MSCI Brazil and large emerging-market index funds, where it sits among the bigger holdings. ETF exposure spreads the single-stock risk across dozens of names but dilutes how much any Nubank move affects you. Always check a fund's holdings and weighting before assuming meaningful exposure.
Walnut is informational and is not an investment adviser. This page is educational and not a recommendation to buy or sell NU; figures are approximate and dated, and your own situation, time horizon, and risk tolerance should drive any decision. Verify current data before investing.