next, the Brazilian neobank controlled by one of the country’s largest banks, Bradesco, announced its first acquisition this Monday (7): Aarin, a payments fintech founded by Ticiana Amorim and Victor Tavares in Salvador, Bahia, (Northeast Brazil) in early 2020. The neobank‘s marketplace nextShop will be the first vertical benefited by the operation, with the inclusion of payments with cashback and PIX (Brazil‘s instant payments system). After only two months in operation, nextShop went from 13,000 to 100,000 items for sale and eight to 22 partner retailers.
nextShop and the offer of accounts for children and teenagers (called nextJoy) are the verticals likely to drive the neobank’s growth in the next 12 months.
The digital bank surpassed the 10 million customers mark in 2021, a 170% year-over-year growth. The acquisition is also strategic for next to go beyond individuals and attract micro-entrepreneurs (known by the acronym MEI in Brazil) and small businesses as customers.
next’s 2022 plans include investing in data intelligence and developing predictive algorithms to deliver a better customer experience, next’s chief digital officer (CDO) explained to LABS in January.
“The launch of nextShop, our marketplace, also allows us to explore other areas within our digital platform, with a mix of retail, travel, media, and other solutions,” says the executive.
READ ALSO: All about MOVii’s next steps, Colombia’s primary bank challenger
Created within Bradesco, next was able to use the bank’s technological resources to develop its platform from scratch. Just over a year ago, however, next became an independent company, operating separately from the bank. Then, in February, it applied for a multiple banking license with the Central Bank.
