The CEO of Nu Holdings, David Velez, was recognized as the Entrepreneur of the Year in its twenty-third edition, an award that was presented by the mayor of Bogotá, Carlos Fernando Galan. The businessman highlighted during his speech the potential he sees in Colombia and the needs around access to the financial system.
Like almost all success stories, The creation of Nu in 2013 arose from a need. Vélez identified the urgency in the financial system to simplify processes and eliminate bureaucracy when opening a bank account. That is why the objective was clear: offer digital, accessible financial services without the bureaucracy of traditional banking.
Now, more than a decade later, the magnate not only consolidated his business in Mexico, Brazil and Colombia, but recently obtained the license to operate in the United States. These achievements, together with the digital revolution of the financial services platform, were the milestones that established him as the Entrepreneur of the Year 2025.
Also read: Trump has been “positive” for the financial sector in the US, says David Vélez, CEO of Nubank
In his speech, Vélez highlighted the relevance of the private sector to make the country and to advance in the most important systems that move the world, including the financial system. He spoke about the opportunities that Colombia has to advance and be at the forefront of the sector, despite the regulations it faces; That is why he assured that he sees a country “with extraordinary potential that is waiting to be unleashed.”
“That is the engine. That is the bet. Not a government plan. Not a subsidy. Not a decree. It is you. It is us. It is the Colombian private sector, operating freely, competing with integrity and creating value for society,” said the businessman.
However, he assured that the true transformative power is not in a company or an entrepreneur, but in an ecosystem. “It is in millions of Colombians who understand that they can be protagonists of their own economic history. That they do not need to ask permission to create. That they do not need to wait for a government to solve what they can solve faster, more efficiently and with greater impact. That they see themselves as empowered actors and owners of their destiny.”
Regarding the perception that is sometimes had about certain economic systems, the CEO of Nu Holdings pointed out that it is not only a custom that this country has, but that it is recurrent that capitalism is blamed for the failures that exist in the economies.“but when examined carefully, it is discovered that in the vast majority of cases the failure is not capitalism, but the absence of it and excess regulation.”
“It is the capture of the State by private interests. It is protectionism that defends the incumbents at the expense of consumers. “The failures that we attribute to the free market are almost always failures of a market that is not free enough.” he commented.
In that sense, the founder of Nu Holdings clarified that this does not mean that the Government does not have an essential role in the economy, especially in guaranteeing the rule of law, protecting property rights, enforcing contracts and investing in education and infrastructure. “But the creation of value, innovation, employment, the solution to people’s specific problems; that comes from the private sector. It comes from millions of people who every day decide to undertake, work, compete, serve.”
That is why he insisted on the importance of capitalism within the financial ecosystem and, given the distrust it generates in some sectors, he mentioned as an example the usury rate, which – as he explained – was designed to protect the most vulnerable consumers from abusive interest rates. “The intention is noble. But the results are devastating.”
“Today, 65% of Colombians cannot access formal credit. More than 11 million people are forced to resort to gota a gota, an illegal system where lenders charge average annual rates of 380% to individuals and 666% to companies. That is more than 23 times the legal usury rate. And these Colombians are left completely unprotected: without a contract, without regulation, without rights, exposed to threats and violence,” he warned.
Vélez highlighted that the regulation designed to protect the most vulnerable ended up excluding them from the formal system and handing them over to the most abusive lenders that exist. “It is a public policy tragedy that should outrage us all.”
Nu’s conquests
As he has already mentioned on several occasions, Nu was born from frustration over the procedures to open a bank account, and that is why, together with Cristina Junqueira and Edward Wible, they founded the financial services platform in Sao Paulo that today has more than 131 million clients.
“In Brazil, when Nubank entered the market, the Brazilian banking sector was one of the most concentrated and most profitable in the world, not because it served its clients well, but because the lack of competition allowed it to do so,” he highlighted.
Regarding this, he highlighted that the financial system in that country grew almost double between 2018 and 2026. “Almost half of the country was banked in just eight years; 32 million of those people entered the system via Nubank for the first time, and 28 million people obtained their first credit card with us.”
This impact that Nubank has had is also having its fruits in Colombia, as highlighted by the CEO, who assured that in just a year and a half it became the fifth largest financial institution in the country in total deposits, reaching more than $9.2 billion.
“We offer one of the most competitive savings accounts on the market, with daily performance, no hidden costs, immediate liquidity. And we are just getting started: we have already launched instant payments, digital CDTs, and we will soon scale our credit offering. Our commitment to Colombia is long-term and of great ambition,” he said.
