The decision of N26 to wind up operations in Brazil underscores its strategy to focus on its core European markets
European digital bank N26 announced its decision to discontinue the test phase in Brazil and quit the market to concentrate on European operations.
The Brazilian N26 product prototypes have been tested with select customers who joined the waiting list since November 2021. However, the banking app was never launched to the general public. N26 didn’t disclose the reasons for its decision to discontinue the testing and not proceed with the rollout.
The digital bank announced it would close all accounts in Brazil within the next two months. As for Brazil-based employees, they will have the opportunity to apply for vacancies in N26’s European offices.
N26 is headquartered in Berlin, with offices in multiple cities across Europe and more than 8 million customers in 24 markets.
The challenger first mentioned plans to enter the Brazilian market in 2019. It took N26 two years to secure a banking license in the country and offer local customers credit operations services such as the issuance of electronic currency and credit analysis.
At the same time, the German neobank faced strong competition in Brazil from local industry players such as Nubank which had over 25 million customers in Mexico and Brazil in 2021.
As of today, Nubank has surpassed 90 million customers in Latin America across its operations in Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, growing its presence in the region at an incredible pace. According to the latest statistics, nearly 50% of Brazilians are currently Nu customers.
