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Hey fintech fam 💜

Big day for our industry—Chime just IPO’d. As someone who’s covered fintech for a decade, I know a win like this sends waves. Inclusion. Profitability. Staying power. That’s the story—and it matters.

Plus: I’m digging into the economic power of immigrants (yes, it’s connected), and…

San Francisco, I’m coming your way.

Next week, while I’m in town, we’re hosting a members-only happy hour for The Academy of Fintech, Fintech Is Femme’s private community of 150+ operators, execs, and builders.

Want in? Founding memberships are open. Can’t wait to see you in SF!

Now, let’s get into it.

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What’s Up In Fintech

Every Thursday, I bring you the latest fintech news and trends, delivering the key insights that matter most to the industry—and you.

#1 From Nearly Out of Cash to Nasdaq: Chime’s IPO Moment

One of 2025’s most anticipated IPO’s finally happened—yes, it was a fintech.

On Thursday, Chime, the neobank built for everyday Americans, debuted on the Nasdaq under the ticker CHYM, raising $864 million with an IPO price of $27. By the close of trading, it had surged to $37 per share, giving it a market cap of $12 billion.

That’s a confident return to public markets for a category many had written off.

But the real story of Chime’s IPO isn’t the price pop. It’s the journey—and what it tells us about the resilience, transformation, and future direction of fintech.

A Decade-Long Build to Overnight Success

Founded in 2012, Chime set itself apart from day one—not as a traditional bank, but as a tech company built around consumer outcomes. 

Serving the 75% of Americans earning under $100K, its mission has always been financial inclusion: offering truly fee-free banking and making money not through penalties, but through interchange fees tied directly to customer spending.

Chime’s growth hasn’t been linear. TechCrunch reported that the company nearly died before its Series B round. 

I can already hear investors asking themselves: 

Could a neobank targeting lower-income customers survive? 

Could a product based on free checking accounts and debit cards generate real revenue?

Today, Chime’s financials offer a resounding “yes.”

• 2023 Revenue: $1.3 billion

• 2024 Revenue: $1.7 billion

• 2023 Loss: $203 million

• 2024 Loss: $25 million

• Q1 2025: $13 million net income on $519 million revenue

This is what sustainable scale looks like. Chime didn’t just grow—it grew smarter, leaned into efficiency, and became profitable.

Built in a Boom, Survived the Bust

As Drew Glover, my podcast co-host and founding partner at Fiat Growth, put it:

“Chime wasn’t built in this market. It was born in a moment of abundance—where capital was cheap, rounds were massive, and distribution played differently. But Chime made the most of it. They scaled. They served. They lasted.”

That’s the lesson here. Chime emerged in the go-go VC days of the 2010s. But what earned them this IPO wasn’t flashy spending or unchecked growth. It was a strategic adaptation.

They built a product for the underbanked—still one of the most underserved demographics in financial services. And by monetizing user activity (not user pain), they created an incentive alignment rare in finance.

Every swipe earns Chime money. But customers only swipe when they actually have funds. It’s a business model based on trust, not traps.

Why It Matters: Momentum Is Contagious

As someone who's reported on fintech for the last decade, I know patterns and inflection points when I see them. Chime’s IPO is more than a company milestone—it’s a signal to the industry.

We’ve been in a fintech IPO drought. Since SoFi’s debut in June 2021, the market’s been cautious. Sure, eToro and Circle have gone public this year—but Chime’s strong showing might finally break the inertia.

Other fintech unicorns—like Klarna, Gemini, and Stripe—are watching closely. The success of Chime’s debut will likely influence when (and how) these companies pursue their own public market strategies.

It’s worth noting that:

• The U.S. IPO market is slowly reawakening in 2025, with volumes up 40% YoY, per Renaissance Capital.

• Fintech-specific VC is rebounding too: global fintech funding hit $10.3 billion in Q1 2025, the highest level of funding since Q1 2023, according to CB Insights.

• Public market sentiment is shifting toward profitable, purpose-driven companies—and Chime checks both boxes.

What Comes Next 

Chime’s story reminds us that fintech isn’t dead—it’s maturing.

D2C fintech may not be “back” in the way some want, but it’s certainly evolving. Future winners will look less like blitzscalers and more like precision operators. As Drew put it:

“What comes next won’t be neobanks. It’ll be focused. Scrappy. Obsessed with solving obvious problems in non-obvious ways.”

This IPO is a proof point. It shows that if you can survive the noise, stay aligned with your customer, and actually make money—there is still a way through.

So the question isn’t just what’s next for Chime. It’s: What are you building?

The runway is clearing. The market is watching. And the momentum is real.

#2 Immigrants Drive Economic Growth —Fintech Needs In

The debates rage on about borders, labor, and identity—but here’s what the data says: immigrants don’t drain the American economy. They drive it.

And in fintech? They represent a generational market we haven’t even begun to serve properly.

Just look at what Chime pulled off this week.

They saw a market others overlooked: working-class Americans earning under $100K. Investors passed. Experts doubted. The neobank model seemed risky. But Chime doubled down on that underserved market—and built a $12 billion company.

That playbook works. And it applies to other overlooked consumer markets, too.

Immigrants make up just 15% of the U.S. population—but they launch 20% of all businesses. 

They’re 80% more likely to become entrepreneurs than U.S.-born citizens. 

Over 3.2 million immigrants currently run their own businesses, generating $1.3 trillion in sales and employing nearly 8 million workers.

That’s not charity. That’s GDP.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates immigration—regardless of legal status—will add $7 trillion to the U.S. economy over the next decade.

And here’s the part too many ignore:

No matter what political narrative dominates the headlines, immigrants will continue to be part of America’s economic engine. They are here. They are building. They are banking. The financial system already relies on their labor, their entrepreneurship, and their spending.

So why hasn’t fintech kept up?

Immigrants face wildly different financial realities. Many operate cash-heavy businesses. Many are unbanked or underbanked. Most navigate language barriers, lack of credit history, or remittance obligations. These aren’t edge cases—they’re the core use cases.

This is a blueprint moment for fintech. Whoever builds for these consumers wins long-term.

And the proof is everywhere.

• 40% of Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants.
  

• 55% of U.S. unicorns have at least one immigrant founder.

Why It Matters

Chime proved that building for overlooked markets is not a compromise. It’s a strategy.

If fintech wants to lead the next decade of financial innovation, it must build for the communities shaping the economy’s next chapter. Immigrant consumers aren’t a niche. They are the future middle class. They are the new business class. And they’re ready to be served—with intention, equity, and smart product design.

Immigrant-founded companies are already valued higher than the GDPs of some countries. 

Now ,imagine what happens when we build infrastructure that actually supports the next wave of immigrant founders and families.

The opportunity is here. The numbers are clear. It’s just a matter of who’s bold enough to see it—like Chime did.

👉 Read my full column on fintech and immigrant impact here.

#3 Redefining Wealth-Building in Latin America with Carlos Díaz of RUUT

While we get ready to drop new episodes of Humans of Fintech, I’m throwing it back to one of our convos recorded live on the Nasdaq trading floor earlier this year.

I sat down with Carlos Díaz, Co-Founder of RUUT—Mexico’s largest Registered Investment Advisor—to talk about inclusion, innovation, and investing for the next generation.

RUUT is breaking barriers for first-time investors (average user age: 24!), with nearly 60% of its user base identifying as women.

That’s huge—especially when research consistently shows that women investors outperform men over time thanks to smarter risk management, long-term strategy, and better diversification.

With $4M in assets under management and over $100K in returns generated for its community, RUUT is redefining what it means to invest in a market with historically low financial literacy.

In this episode, we dive into:

• Designing products for people who’ve never invested before
  

• Why building for women isn’t niche—it’s just smart
  

• How UX builds trust in underserved markets
  

• What’s next for fintech across Latin America

🎙️ Listen on YouTube, Apple, or Spotify—and stay tuned, new episodes of Humans of Fintech are dropping soon.

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[SAN FRANCISCO] SF Happy Hour with The Academy of Fintech 🍸

The Academy of Fintech is hosting a private happy hour for our founding members—150+ operators, execs, and builders committed to leveling up together.

This is where intros happen, deals get sparked, and real momentum builds.

Want in? Founding memberships are now open.

RSVP for happy hour if you’re a member or apply to join the community here.

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[NEW YORK] EMERALD CLIMATE FINTECH SUMMIT

Happening Sept 19 in NYC during Climate Week.

Where climate meets capital.

Where women lead.

Where fintech scales what matters.

At Fintech Is Femme, we follow the money—and it’s heading straight to climate.

Climate fintech is not a niche. It’s the next big business strategy.

✅ $12B in ROI if we close the gender funding gap

✅ Women-led startups are scaling smarter

✅ Clean energy, carbon markets, and ESG—this is where fintech grows next

I’m teaming up with Bhuva Shakti to launch something different.

Not just a summit. A strategy session for what’s next.

Want in?

We’re looking for sponsors, speakers, and builders. Reach out.

Tickets are already flying. Get yours here.

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That wraps up today’s edition—thanks for reading! Until next week, keep innovating and challenging the status quo. See you Tuesday!

Love,

Nicole 💜