Nubank’s owner is in talks to buy Monzo at up to £10bn

Monzo is in talks about a sale to Brazil’s Nu Holdings, the owner of Nubank. A deal could value the British digital bank at between £8bn and £10bn, Mark Kleinman reported for Sky News on Saturday.

The talks are at a relatively early stage, according to Sky News. Monzo has hired Morgan Stanley and Qatalyst to advise it, and the outline terms are under negotiation. A deal would likely be paid in cash and shares.

Nu has held discussions to buy Monzo, Bloomberg reported , citing people with knowledge of the matter. Monzo has also hired the law firm Slaughter and May, according to Bloomberg.

A sale to Nu is one of two main options for Monzo’s board and shareholders, a source close to the process told Sky News. The other is a new funding round at a valuation above £8bn, which would pay for expansion in mainland Europe.

A sale would rule out a near-term London stock market listing for Monzo. Government ministers and the London Stock Exchange have pushed the bank to list in the UK, Sky News reported.

“Nubank does not comment on rumours or speculation,” Nu said in a statement to Sky News.

Monzo has 16 million customers: 15 million personal and one million business. In its latest annual results, revenue rose 39% to £1.7bn and adjusted pre-tax profit rose 20% to £172.6m. Investors last valued it at £4.5bn in October 2024.

Diana Layfield, a former Google and Standard Chartered executive, runs Monzo. Earlier this year it said it would shut its US operations to focus on the UK and Europe.

Nu is listed in New York with a market value of about $65.5bn. It says it has 140 million customers in Brazil, Colombia and Mexico. It has no presence in the UK or Europe, according to Bloomberg, and Monzo’s finance chief, Tom Oldham, used to work at Nubank.

Monzo’s rival Revolut plans a dual London and Nasdaq listing . This month it won a Colombian banking licence in one of Nu’s markets. In the US, Chime is buying its sponsor bank .