Nubank, Brazil's largest digital bank, is in preliminary talks to buy the British online lender Monzo in a deal that would value the London-based fintech at between 8 billion and 10 billion pounds, about 55 billion to 68.7 billion reais. Sky News broke the story on Saturday morning, September 26, and the Financial Times confirmed it, citing two people familiar with the matter; Folha de S.Paulo republished the FT report in Brazil. A takeover would be paid with a mix of cash and shares of the parent company, Nu Holdings. Monzo declined to comment.

Monzo was founded in 2015 by Tom Blomfield and has 16 million customers, almost all of them in the United Kingdom. In the fiscal year ended in March 2026, it earned a pre-tax profit of 87.3 million pounds, up from 60.5 million pounds a year earlier, on revenue that rose 39% to 1.7 billion pounds, according to the FT. Its last fundraising, a secondary round in 2024, valued it at 4.5 billion pounds. Morgan Stanley and the technology bank Qatalyst are advising on the process.

A sale to the Brazilian group is only one of the options under review. Monzo is also holding talks with private equity firms about selling a stake of up to 15% to raise money and speed up growth, and it is weighing a more traditional venture round. The bank has been through a turbulent stretch: after the sudden exit of chief executive TS Anil last year, investors including Accel and Iconiq demanded changes on the board. His successor, Diana Layfield, who took over in February, shut down the bank's US operation and refocused growth on Europe, launching in Ireland and Spain.

For Nubank, the purchase would accelerate its push abroad. Founded 13 years ago in Sao Paulo, it is Latin America's largest fintech, with 140 million customers across the Americas and a market value of 65 billion dollars, roughly 337 billion reais; its parent, Nu Holdings, trades on the New York Stock Exchange. The company has also secured a banking license in the United States. In Europe it would meet a heavyweight rival: Revolut, Monzo's bigger domestic competitor, which has 80 million customers and operations in more than 40 countries.

A setback for the London Stock Exchange

A sale to a Brazilian buyer would be another blow to the London Stock Exchange, which has long courted Monzo as a potential listing. The timing of an initial public offering was already a point of friction among shareholders, some of whom warned against a rushed flotation.

For Nu Holdings shareholders, the price under discussion, of 8 billion to 10 billion pounds, is roughly twice the 2024 valuation, and payment would combine cash with shares, putting the company's own stock to work as currency. For customers, the effect is smaller in the short run: Brazilian users of Nubank would see no immediate change, while Monzo's 16 million British customers would gain a Latin American owner. The bet being negotiated is scale: a ready-made European customer base that would let Nubank diversify revenue beyond lending in the Americas.