Financial Inclusion and Digital Transformation: The Future of Banking in Our Region

This month marks six months since I joined Nu, a fascinating journey that has affirmed my belief that the future of banking lies in our region. In countries like Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico, transformation is happening in real-time.

The financial revolution is undeniably digital. According to studies by the World Bank, it is crucial to leverage the trend towards digitalization to improve the lives of nearly 1.4 million adults worldwide who still lack access to the financial sector. In this context, the Global Findex 2021 report emphasizes the importance of technology to achieve precisely that access.

Inclusion gaps in Colombia are still unacceptable. According to the 2022 Financial Inclusion Report from the Banking of Opportunities, only 22.5% of Colombian adults have a credit card, and 36.2% have access to credit products. Despite 79.6% of adults having savings accounts, only 51.9% use them actively, due to fees, poor service, and confusion.

Nu’s 100% digital model has allowed us to advance our mission of achieving greater inclusion through technology. How? By not having physical branches, anyone with access to a smartphone and internet connection has a branch in their pocket with Nu. This has enabled us to achieve unprecedented reach in the country. In just over 2 years, we have already reached 90% of municipalities in Colombia, in 100% of departments. And if we look beyond Colombia, Nu’s figures continue to impress: this month, for example, we celebrated our IPO in 2021. At that time, we had about 48 million customers, and just two years later, that number reached 90 million.

In addition, our credit models consider demographic, behavioral, and credit risk variables, allowing us to include people traditionally excluded from credit. For 30% of our customers, the Nu credit card has been their first credit experience, and of that percentage, 51% are women.

I close the year with pride in seeing the impact we have achieved in such a short time, and also with great excitement for what is to come in 2024. Moreover, acknowledging the positive 

balance of the country regarding banking innovation. Open finance regulation has evolved, and more and more actors are offering products and services with local consumers and their needs in mind.

There is still much work to be done to achieve the goal of innovation and financial inclusion. But, as I mentioned at the beginning, the future of banking is in our region, it is here and now, and it is digital.

By: Marcela Torres, General Manager of Nu Colombia