Nu Holdings added 5.7 million customers in Q2

Brazilian fintech unicorn Nu Holdings added 5.7 million customers in the second quarter, bringing the number of people and businesses using its services to 65.3 million. 

Nu dipped its toe into the world of cryptocurrencies in July, adding 1 million customers to its Nucripto platform within three weeks of its launch. 

The digital banking company grew its total customers by 57% year-over-year in the second quarter, up from about 41.7 million in June 2021. Nu disclosed the figures in a second-quarter earnings release ahead of a conference call today.

Nu calculates that 52.3 million of its total customers — almost 80% — are considered active. The total consists of about 63.3 million consumers and 2 million small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), according to a slide deck company executives presented during the earnings call. 

Nu's biggest operation is in its home country of Brazil, where it grew customers 51% year-over-year in the second quarter to 62.3 million. 

Nu is also expanding its reach in Mexico and Colombia, where it has about 2.7 million and 314,000 customers, respectively. The company added nearly 700,000 customers in those countries during the quarter, it said. 

The banking company's revenues jumped 230% in the second quarter to $1.2 billion on a foreign exchange-neutral basis. 

Nu Holdings's net loss grew to $29.9 million in the second quarter, compared with $15.2 million in the same three months of 2021. This was due to "higher share-based compensation and related tax effects in the quarter," the company said in its earnings release.

The company's adjusted net income was $17 million in the second quarter, up from $16.5 million in the previous-year period. 

Nu's main financial institution, NuFin, reported adjusted capital of $3.9 billion at the end of June. Of this, 79% was cash or cash equivalents. 

Nu Holdings also announced changes to its management structure today, with Chief Operating Officer Youssef Lahrech taking on the position of president in addition to his current role. He will "now directly manage operations, budget and key metric performance for global products, global platforms, market operations, and corporate functions," the company said in a press statement. The company will make other management changes, such as co-founder and Brazil CEO Cristina Junqueira adding the role of chief growth officer.