Nomad, a fintech that allows you to open a checking account and investments in a U.S. bank in a 100% digital way, has just raised a new investment of US$ 32 million (R$ 160 million). With this investment, the platform is now valued at more than R$ 1 billion in market value.
The capital raising was led by the American venture capital fund Stripes and accompanied by the funds monashees, Spark Capital, Propel, Globo Ventures and Abstract. In an interview with Forbes, Patrick Sigrist, founder and executive chairman of the board of Nomad, explains that the contribution will be allocated to product expansion, in addition to attracting new customers and developing technologies already in use which, according to the executive, is the great differential of the company.
"A big part of this money will go to increase the technologies we already have, as well as to launch new investment products. We have just launched on the platform a resource that facilitates the individual purchase of stocks and ETFs (indexes) abroad," Sigrist points out.
With the function, the user can trade the main companies and funds of the American stock exchanges with no minimum value limit, with instant execution of buy and sell orders. The fintech will also invest in new marketing channels, expanding operations, and increasing the number of employees in the company, which has 250 employees.
According to Nomad's CEO, Lucas Vargas, the goal for the next 12 to 18 months is to launch a credit card to complement the international debit card already offered by the platform. The fintech also intends to offer other credit products and expand its banking services.
"We need to be creative to be able to offer a Brazilian who is accessing the world in dollars a product that is really easy to understand, comprehend, and consume," adds the executive.
The US$ 32 million capital is not for nothing. Nomad is formed by partners Patrick Sigrist, founder of iFood, Lucas Vargas, who ran Viva Real (a platform that is now part of the Zap Group and OLX Brazil), Eduardo Haber and Marcos Nader, both well known names in the financial market.
"Although we can't describe our trajectory as easy, our track record helps a lot in winning new investments. The environment already knows us, because we have been in the market for a long time, where we have made several successful deals. This is really a seal of approval to raise funds. We were the first to position ourselves to attend the Brazilian in a global way. So I think this is certainly what attracted and facilitated our fundraising," affirms Vargas.
Stripes, the American venture capital fund that leads the investment, is known for investing in products that expand users' financial access. "Whether spending, saving or investing, the fintech's multi-product platform allows any Brazilian to build a financial life outside of Brazil. So we are very pleased to assist Lucas, Patrick and the rest of the Nomad team as they build the Brazilian bank without borders," says Michael Vaughan, Stripes Operating Partner.
Pandemic Covid-19, war in Ukraine, falling dollar, and the possibility of an international crisis have made for a pessimistic market climate, especially for new businesses. Founded in 2019 and launched in 2020, Nomad managed to get through the troubled scenario and grow its customer base.
"In the first year, 100,000 accounts were opened. From October to the present date, precisely at the height of instability, we jumped to 300,000. While the market was unstable and generating these doubts in everybody, we reverted all this. Of course it wasn't easy, but it means that we built a stable product that has adherence with the market, which contributes to the acceleration of the business," says Vargas.
Once a pioneer in the US accounts market for Brazilians, Nomad now faces increasing competition from other fintechs and neobanks. This month, Xp and Banco Inter announced launches of this service.
The differential of Nomad's platform, according to the CEO, is to be fully covered by the FDIC, a kind of FGC (Credit Guarantee Fund) for US bank accounts.
Sigrist also points out that the platform is not directed only to a niche of customers who meet a minimum ticket. "In Brazil, we have a life that is already practically dollarized, thanks to the costs tied to the dollar price. So it makes a lot of sense for Brazilians to dollarize their assets. That's why Nomad increasingly wants to improve this experience in investments abroad," he says.
Read next: Investors wait
Nomad, a fintech that allows you to open a checking account and investments in a U.S. bank in a 100% digital way, has just raised a new investment of US$ 32 million (R$ 160 million). With this investment, the platform is now valued at more than R$ 1 billion in market value.
The capital raising was led by the American venture capital fund Stripes and accompanied by the funds monashees, Spark Capital, Propel, Globo Ventures and Abstract. In an interview with Forbes, Patrick Sigrist, founder and executive chairman of the board of Nomad, explains that the contribution will be allocated to product expansion, in addition to attracting new customers and developing technologies already in use which, according to the executive, is the great differential of the company.
"A big part of this money will go to increase the technologies we already have, as well as to launch new investment products. We have just launched on the platform a resource that facilitates the individual purchase of stocks and ETFs (indexes) abroad," Sigrist points out.
With the function, the user can trade the main companies and funds of the American stock exchanges with no minimum value limit, with instant execution of buy and sell orders. The fintech will also invest in new marketing channels, expanding operations, and increasing the number of employees in the company, which has 250 employees.
According to Nomad's CEO, Lucas Vargas, the goal for the next 12 to 18 months is to launch a credit card to complement the international debit card already offered by the platform. The fintech also intends to offer other credit products and expand its banking services.
"We need to be creative to be able to offer a Brazilian who is accessing the world in dollars a product that is really easy to understand, comprehend, and consume," adds the executive.
The US$ 32 million capital is not for nothing. Nomad is formed by partners Patrick Sigrist, founder of iFood, Lucas Vargas, who ran Viva Real (a platform that is now part of the Zap Group and OLX Brazil), Eduardo Haber and Marcos Nader, both well known names in the financial market.
"Although we can't describe our trajectory as easy, our track record helps a lot in winning new investments. The environment already knows us, because we have been in the market for a long time, where we have made several successful deals. This is really a seal of approval to raise funds. We were the first to position ourselves to attend the Brazilian in a global way. So I think this is certainly what attracted and facilitated our fundraising," affirms Vargas.
Stripes, the American venture capital fund that leads the investment, is known for investing in products that expand users' financial access. "Whether spending, saving or investing, the fintech's multi-product platform allows any Brazilian to build a financial life outside of Brazil. So we are very pleased to assist Lucas, Patrick and the rest of the Nomad team as they build the Brazilian bank without borders," says Michael Vaughan, Stripes Operating Partner.
Pandemic Covid-19, war in Ukraine, falling dollar, and the possibility of an international crisis have made for a pessimistic market climate, especially for new businesses. Founded in 2019 and launched in 2020, Nomad managed to get through the troubled scenario and grow its customer base.
"In the first year, 100,000 accounts were opened. From October to the present date, precisely at the height of instability, we jumped to 300,000. While the market was unstable and generating these doubts in everybody, we reverted all this. Of course it wasn't easy, but it means that we built a stable product that has adherence with the market, which contributes to the acceleration of the business," says Vargas.
Once a pioneer in the US accounts market for Brazilians, Nomad now faces increasing competition from other fintechs and neobanks. This month, Xp and Banco Inter announced launches of this service.
The differential of Nomad's platform, according to the CEO, is to be fully covered by the FDIC, a kind of FGC (Credit Guarantee Fund) for US bank accounts.
Sigrist also points out that the platform is not directed only to a niche of customers who meet a minimum ticket. "In Brazil, we have a life that is already practically dollarized, thanks to the costs tied to the dollar price. So it makes a lot of sense for Brazilians to dollarize their assets. That's why Nomad increasingly wants to improve this experience in investments abroad," he says.
Read next: Investors wait