Nubank

Is Nubank safe?

For ordinary balances, yes. Nubank's yield-earning money sits in deposits covered by Brazil's Fundo Garantidor de Créditos up to R$250,000 per person, and money left idle in the prepaid account must be kept at the Central Bank or in government bonds. Nu Holdings is very profitable and its capital is above the regulatory minimum. What holds the score back is the business model: most of the loan book is credit cards and unsecured personal loans to Brazil's mass market, funded by deposits that can be withdrawn daily. We score it 68/100, between Revolut at 65 and Santander, which also runs a large bank in Brazil, at 77.

Which Nubank company holds your money

Product	Entity	Protection
Account balance that earns yield, Caixinhas	Nu Financeira S.A. (RDB)	FGC, R$250,000 per person
Fixed-term RDBs and CDBs	Nu Financeira S.A.	FGC, same limit
Prepaid account money not invested	Nu Pagamentos S.A.	Ring-fenced at the Central Bank or in federal bonds
Funds, shares, crypto via Nu Invest	Nu Invest	Not deposits; held in custody

Nu Financeira is the group's only FGC member. The limit counts all FGC-covered balances one person holds across the same conglomerate. At the end of 2025, $32.0 billion of Nubank's $41.9 billion of deposits were RDBs and $9.5 billion were prepaid account balances.

The FGC itself came under strain after the Central Bank liquidated certain banks. In February 2026 its board approved an emergency recapitalisation plan, and Nubank advanced $186.4 million to the fund in March 2026. Payouts were not interrupted, but a weaker fund is a reason not to sit right at the limit.

Not a bank, for now

In Brazil, Nubank operates as a payment institution, Nu Pagamentos, which leads a regulated group including the credit company Nu Financeira. New Central Bank rules on the use of the word "bank" pushed it to add a banking licence. In July 2026 Nubank agreed to buy Banco Porto Real de Investimentos, subject to Central Bank approval; no approval had been announced by early October 2026. Nubank says the extra licence adds no capital or liquidity requirements.

Outside Brazil, the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency gave Nubank preliminary conditional approval for a national bank charter in January 2026. That is not yet a bank: Nubank launched US accounts on 10 September 2026 through Lead Bank, an FDIC-insuredDeposit insuranceA government-backed scheme that repays bank customers up to a set limit if their bank fails, such as the FDIC in the US or the FSCS in the UK.More in the glossary partner bank, so US deposits are insured as Lead Bank deposits up to $250,000.

Capital and credit risk

Measure (30 June 2026)	Nu prudential conglomerate
CET1 ratioCET1 ratioA bank's highest-quality capital (mainly shares and retained profits) as a share of its risk-weighted assets. Higher means more room to absorb losses.More in the glossary	11.9%
Total capital ratio	15.7%
Minimum total capital ratio	10.5%
Surplus over minimum	$1.85 billion
90+ day non-performing loans	6.9%

The CET1 ratio fell from 13.0% at the end of 2025 as lending grew faster than capital. The buffer is adequate but not large for a lender with this risk profile. Of the $39.4 billion credit portfolio, $26 billion is credit cards and $10.3 billion unsecured loans, and 6.9% of loans were more than 90 days overdue in June 2026. Profit is the main shock absorber: net income reached $1.06 billion in the second quarter alone, a 33% return on equity. Brazil's sovereign rating of BB limits how high any Brazilian lender can be rated.

Fraud and the false liquidation email

Brazil's instant payment system Pix has made phone scams and coerced transfers common. Nubank's app lets you set Pix limits, register trusted devices and require biometric confirmation, and you should use them. In June 2026 an operational error sent some customers an email saying the Central Bank had ordered Nubank's liquidation and telling them to claim from the FGC. Nubank apologised and the Central Bank denied the claim. Expect scammers to copy that kind of message.

How to keep money safe at Nubank

1. Keep the total of RDBs, Caixinhas and CDBs at Nubank under R$250,000 per person. Spread larger sums across unrelated institutions.
2. Set a low night-time Pix limit in the app and require biometrics for transfers.
3. Ignore messages asking you to move money or claim from the FGC. Check the Central Bank's website or the official app instead.
4. Treat Nu Invest funds and crypto as investments, not protected savings.

How we scored it

Conduct (78) is Nubank's strongest factor, with no material fines found. Deposit protectionDeposit insuranceA government-backed scheme that repays bank customers up to a set limit if their bank fails, such as the FDIC in the US or the FSCS in the UK.More in the glossary (70) is solid for RDB balances but sits on a fund that needed recapitalising. Capital (62) is above the minimum but not generous for an unsecured lender, and liquidity (70) reflects lending almost nine-tenths of deposits. For comparison, N26 has stronger liquidity but a much weaker conduct record.