Brazilian Nubank has expanded its services to allow all its customers across Brazil to buy crypto through the financial institution.
With about 53.9 million customers, Nubank said all would have access to acquire crypto through the bank app. The fintech bank initially announced the option in a May blog post. At the time, Nubank said the feature would launch in phases, and it also made a treasury allocation to Bitcoin. The digital bank said the treasury allocation seeks to “strengthen the company’s conviction in the current and future potential of bitcoin in disrupting financial services.”
While the crypto option was in the testing phase, just a few of Nubank’s customers had access to the functionality.
Nubank Now Allows All Customers to Buy Crypto
Fast forward to earlier this week, the Brazilian neobank updated the blog post, announcing the new service. Nubank said the option to buy crypto is now available to all customers, asking that users update their apps to use the feature. According to an English translation of the blog post, Nubank will start the crypto service with the largest cryptocurrencies by market valuation- Bitcoin and Ethereum. The bank noted the fact that they both represent 60% of the entire market cap, with about $2 trillion.
Furthermore, Nubank stated that it chose Bitcoin due to its position as the largest among other cryptocurrencies. It continued:
“Bitcoin fluctuates a lot, just like any crypto. However, due to the weight it has in the market and the technology it represents, it is considered the most solid cryptocurrency on the market, So we started with her.”
To activate the crypto capabilities, users will firstly update their app. Nubank is yet to include the function to withdraw acquired cryptocurrencies to an external wallet. The bank charges about a 0.2% fee on each buy and sell transaction. Additionally, the fintech bank has information on Bitcoin for anyone to educate themselves.
Berkshire’s Investment in Nubank
Nubank received a billion-dollar investment from Warren Buffett‘s Berkshire Hathaway earlier this year. The bank also got a $500 million investment from Berkshire in mid-2021, after which it made a $150 million investment return following its public debut on the NYSE in December.
Nubank has now become one of the top players in the banking system, competing to offer the best crypto services to its consumers. Traditional banks like Itau Unibanco are also upping their crypto games to serve customers better. Financial services companies BTG Pactual and XP Investimentos are also looking forward to launching their BTC services before year-end.
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