Nubank’s cofounder considered leaving after a blockbuster IPO. Instead, she’s leading the Warren Buffett-backed bank into its second decade

– Take two. Almost two years ago, the Brazilian fintech company Nubank went public. In May, the digital bank with 85 million customers celebrated its 10th anniversary. Those were two milestones that cofounder Cristina Junqueira wanted to see the company through—and she thought she might feel satisfied moving on after they passed. Instead, she’s delved into a new role at Nubank, finding a next chapter within the Warren Buffett-backed company she cofounded.

“Now that I’ve been through both [the 10-year mark and IPO], you could think, ‘OK, well you’re good, right? You can just enjoy the wealth that you built or whatever,'” she says. And Junqueira, indeed, could have sailed off into the sunset. During Nubank’s 2021 IPO pop, her stake in the company was valued at $1.3 billion. Today, Nubank’s stock is down about 42% from that IPO high, with shares up 92% year to date.

Courtesy of Nubank

“But the reality is, there’s still so much ahead of us,” she says. In the company’s early days as a startup, she had a wide-ranging role that touched nearly every part of the business; her cofounder, David Vélez, has served as CEO. In its second decade, she has a more focused position overseeing marketing and communications as well as operations in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia while Nubank seeks to expand its global reach. In Colombia, Nubank launched with a credit card product, similar to its brand-building strategy in Brazil; in Mexico, it’s introduced savings and debit card products.

“It has allowed me to do something I love, which is continue to learn and grow,” she says. And “brush up on my Spanish,” she adds.

In Nubank’s 10 years, Junqueira has seen vast changes in the Latin American startup ecosystem. There’s much more money “flowing” to the region now, she says. And, today, there’s much more “glamor” attached to becoming a founder than there was when she left her banking job to start a company.

“It’s still very interesting,” she says of her job, 10 years in, “and very fulfilling.”

Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
@_emmahinchliffe

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