This will be a diploma in entrepreneurship. The Colombian economy is built through business milestones, financial milestones, and entrepreneurial milestones. One could tell the economic history of Colombia through the events generated by people who have created companies. This year's Entrepreneur of the Year is a complete milestone in Colombia, a milestone in more or less almost eight decades that narrates the Colombian history of the newspaper La República. And it's about David Vélez with his initiative, his financial entrepreneurship, his great bank, which is Nubank. Doctor David, thank you so much for the honor. It's a pleasure. What does a milestone like this represent for you? And if one could tell the story of Colombia, the topic of Nu would be there, as the birth of the stock exchange could be, or the discovery of Cusiana and Cupiagua. Nu is already a financial milestone, and that is obviously more than an ode, more than a tribute to your activity as a banker. What does that mean to you?
Well, it's a great honor. Nu is a project we've been working on for 13 years. A couple of my co-founders and I started with a great dream, a great vision that cell phones and technological platforms could create the opportunity to disrupt the global financial system, traditional banking. In 2013, that concept seemed absurd. Many people couldn't believe that someone would be able to trust a 100% digital bank, one of the largest banks today in Latin America that doesn't have a single bill, a single physical vault. But the bet was to use technology to win the love of our customers. The idea for Nubank came from an experience of much frustration and anger when I moved to Brazil and had great difficulty opening a bank account. The interesting thing was that it was a problem we saw in Brazil, but it was a problem that represented several countries in Latin America, and we have been able to grow to Mexico and Colombia over these years. And today in Colombia, in just under 5 years, we have become the fifth largest bank in terms of deposits. We have been able to build great trust with our customers. We are just getting started in the country because many products are still missing. We only have 4 million Colombians as customers. But I think it represents, first, the opportunity for Latin America and Colombia to create innovative, global-scale companies in this new economy. The future of all companies, in all industries, is technology companies, and Latin America has to participate in that future through digital entrepreneurship. And second, I think it represents the importance of the private sector in our economies. The problem we are solving is a problem that many governments for decades tried to solve with public policies for financial inclusion. And I think we represent a private sector company that entered a very concentrated industry where five banks owned 80% of the market, and by competing for the love of our customers, we were able to gain space and eventually ensure that the customer benefits from better products, better access, more financial inclusion, and lower interest rates.
When one spoke with bankers, especially when Spanish or French bankers came to Colombia, it was always very difficult to compete in Colombia. They would simply arrive and expect to have organic growth, but it's impossible. Here you have to buy a bank to grow. Nubank broke down that barrier because it didn't buy anything, it was simply born and grew.
Yes. We started from scratch organically. We applied for a commercial financing license here, but it's difficult to start from scratch because one of the things the banking industry has, that banks have, is a lot of trust. Usually, it's regulatory licenses that are difficult to obtain, not even much capital, it requires a lot of scale. So, starting a bank and building a brand from scratch was quite complex. There are still many regulatory barriers that prevent new entrants from entering that sector. The banking sector, not only in Colombia but in Latin America, is a sector that has been very closed to external competition. It usually benefits incumbents that exist in the sector, and that makes it difficult for new entrants to compete. But well, it has been possible, despite the different regulatory and capital obstacles, we have managed to build a brand that today is one of the strongest in Colombia, and we have been able to gain the trust that consumers have in us.
When you analyze the fintech ecosystem in Colombia, it's very dynamic. There are too many startups, many linked to financial services. How do you send a message to all these people who are betting on the financial services sector so that their startups mature, whether it's a wallet or a technological device? How do you advise them so they don't die in their attempt to build a company like you did?
Well, entrepreneurship is a difficult, long-term journey. Most startups don't work, so you already have the odds against you from the moment you become an entrepreneur. But in general, consistency, focus, and hard work end up helping. And usually in financial services, but in other industries too, the one who manages to delight the customer is the one who ends up winning. So, I would say it's a focus, regardless of the industry, on that consumer experience, using technology in favor of that consumer, growing to charge less and not to charge more. And there comes a whole series of experiences, knowledge, skills, discipline, focus, resilience, that eventually allows one to succeed in that journey.
When they say to you, to Nubank, 'You are the Uber of banks,' is that an appropriate qualification?
