Digital banking firm Nubank plans MVNO mobile service in Brazil

Brazil-based digital bank platform Nubank announced plans on Tuesday to join Brazil’s increasingly crowded mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) space in a bid to expand its portfolio beyond financial services.

The new service, branded NuCel, will cover 93% of Brazil and offer high-performance 5G connectivity via an MVNO arrangement with mobile operator Claro Brasil. The service will be rolled out gradually, and will initially be available only for customers with devices that support eSIM, although this also means the service can be activated digitally and quickly.

NuCel promises to not only offer a user-friendly mobile service with flexible and no-commitment plans, but also integrate services from the Nubank ecosystem.

While only some functionalities will be available in the initial testing phase of the service, at launch, NuCel customers will be able to use Nubank’s “Caixinhas Turbo” tool, a savings box with a return of 120% of the CDI on amounts deposited by the customer, with a limit of up to R$10,000, for at least one year.

NuCel will offer three plans, with monthly data caps at 15GB, 20GB and 35GB. Customers of Nubank’s higher-end services Ultravioleta and Nubank+ will automatically receive extra gigabytes if they exceed their data allowance.

All plans include the Caixinhas Turbo service, unlimited voice for local and long-distance calls, unlimited WhatsApp (including voice and video calls), and unlimited access to the Nubank app. Payments can be made via Nubank’s credit card.

“NuCel was created to simplify the current telephony portfolio with flexible plans, no surprises for customers, and the autonomy that only a 100% digital platform can offer,” said Livia Chanes, CEO of Nubank in Brazil.

Nubank customers who want to sign up for the service can sign up in the banking app to receive notifications when the service is ready to go.

Brazil already has well over 100 MVNOs, the most recent entry being Unifiquemost recent entry being Unifique, which already has an actual 5G network, but applied for an MVNO licence to expand its reach outside of its network coverage in the states of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul.

Nubank may be counting on the popularity of its banking services as a hook to draw customers. In June 2024, Nubank said it has more than 95 million customers in Brazil.  It also has over 8 million in Mexico, and 1 million in Colombia.

Nubank is also potentially well funded, having reported over US$1 billion in net profit and over US$8 billion in revenues in its 2023 financial results.