Brazil’s retail banking industry continued to reinforce its position as one of the most dynamic financial ecosystems in Latin America during 2025, with digital institutions maintaining strong expansion momentum and intensifying competitive pressure across customer acquisition and transaction activity.
"More than 1,400 institutions compete in Brazil, yet customer and transaction activity remains highly concentrated among a small group of leading players. The ten largest institutions alone accumulated more than 271 million customers, highlighting the scale achieved by Brazil's leading banking groups. Also the ten market leaders accumulated nearly 874 million transactions, reflecting extraordinary levels of financial activity and customer engagement."
New data through December 2025 indicate that customer growth remains heavily concentrated among technology-driven institutions, while established banking groups continue leveraging scale and broad customer relationships to sustain their market positions.
Retail Banking Customers in Brazil - Top 10 Ranking
by number of active customers as of December 2025 (in millions)
Source: RETAIL BANKING CUSTOMERS AND TRANSACTIONS IN BRAZIL: COMPETITIVE TRACKING,
Market Expansion and Competitive Dynamics in Brazil's Retail Banking Sector
The Brazilian retail banking landscape has evolved into an increasingly diversified environment where traditional institutions coexist with digital banks, fintech companies, payment institutions, and specialized financial entities. The competitive structure has become progressively more fragmented, with more than 1,400 entities analyzed across the market.
The data presented in this analysis are based on the report RETAIL BANKING CUSTOMERS AND TRANSACTIONS IN BRAZIL: COMPETITIVE TRACKING, developed through recurring monitoring of financial statements and operational information from companies competing in the market. The study contains historical information and has been updated with data through December 2025.
Digital Banking Continues Capturing Customer Growth
Quarterly market share changes between September and December 2025 reveal strong momentum among several institutions. CAIXA ECONÔMICA FEDERAL recorded the strongest market share increase among the leading institutions, adding 0.47 percentage points. PICPAY followed with a gain of 0.27 percentage points, while NU PAGAMENTOS increased its participation by 0.25 percentage points.
The performance of PARANÁ BANCO and INTER, with increases of 0.13 and 0.06 percentage points respectively, also reinforces the continued ability of specialized and digital-oriented institutions to expand their presence in the market.
These movements suggest that customer acquisition remains highly active and that competition increasingly extends beyond traditional banking products into integrated digital financial ecosystems and embedded services.
NU PAGAMENTOS Maintains Leadership in Customer Base
This market research evaluates the number of customers with at least one active loan, credit card and/or debit card at each closing date, together with the number of loan transactions of any type, including automatic renewals and refinancing operations. Customer and transaction figures consider all entities without eliminating duplicate customers holding multiple simultaneous loans.
By December 2025, NU PAGAMENTOS maintained the largest customer base among the institutions analyzed, reaching 63.8 million active customers. The company remained substantially ahead of major traditional banking institutions.
ITAU followed with 47.2 million customers, while BRADESCO reached 35.3 million customers. Other major institutions among the leading group included BB, CAIXA ECONÔMICA FEDERAL, SANTANDER, MERCADO PAGO IP, PICPAY, BCO CSF S.A., and BTG PACTUAL.
Combined, the ten largest institutions concentrated 271.6 million customers. The magnitude of these numbers illustrates the exceptional scale of Brazil's financial system, where customer relationships increasingly involve multiple products and institutions simultaneously.
Transaction Volumes Reveal Scale Advantages
Customer acquisition represents only one dimension of competition. Transaction activity often provides an even clearer indication of customer engagement and operational intensity.
By December 2025, NU PAGAMENTOS also led the market in transaction volume, reaching approximately 276.5 million transactions. ITAU occupied second position with approximately 143.8 million operations, followed by BRADESCO with approximately 103.9 million transactions.
The leading institutions also included BB, CAIXA ECONÔMICA FEDERAL, SANTANDER, PICPAY, MERCADO PAGO IP, INTER, and BTG PACTUAL.
The combined volume generated by the ten largest institutions reached approximately 874.2 million transactions.
The substantial difference between customer counts and transaction volumes also suggests varying customer usage patterns among institutions. While some organizations prioritize large-scale acquisition strategies, others appear focused on increasing transaction intensity and monetization within their existing customer bases.
Competitive Outlook for 2026
Brazil's retail banking market appears positioned to maintain strong competitive intensity moving into 2026. Digital-native institutions continue demonstrating an ability to rapidly expand market participation, while established banking groups maintain considerable advantages related to scale, brand recognition, and diversified product portfolios.
Future competition is expected to increasingly depend not only on customer acquisition but also on engagement metrics, cross-selling capabilities, ecosystem integration, and operational efficiency.
As the sector evolves, transaction activity and customer behavior metrics may become increasingly relevant indicators for understanding competitive positioning and long-term market leadership.