Inter Surges on 45% Revenue Growth and 25M Active Clients

Date of Call: Feb 11, 2026

Financials Results

• Revenue: BRL 15 billion, up 45% YOY

Business Commentary:

Client Growth and Platform Engagement:

• Inter reported a record 7 million new clients for the year, with an activation rate of 58%, leading to a total active client base of 25 million. In December, they recorded over 21.5 million daily logins, and processed 32,000 financial transactions per minute.
• The growth was driven by continuous improvements in their super app, enhancing the onboarding process, client services, and hyper-personalization strategies.

Loan Portfolio and Credit Card Growth:

• The company achieved a 36% annual growth in its loan portfolio, with credit card volume outpacing debit card transactions. The credit card portfolio saw over 23% of cards being Inter Turning products.
• The growth was attributed to focused strategies on portfolio growth, private payroll loans, and credit card reshaping, alongside favorable market dynamics.

Financial Performance and Net Interest Margin:

• Inter reported total gross revenues of BRL 15 billion, marking a 45% year-on-year growth, with net revenues growing 31% to BRL 8.4 billion. The net interest income increased by 41% year-on-year.
• This performance was driven by strong credit portfolio growth, particularly in payroll loans, credit cards, mortgages, and home equity loans, along with improved risk management.

Asset Quality and Risk Management:

• The 15- to 90-day NPL ratio improved by 10 basis points, decreasing from 4.1% to 4.0%, while the 90-day past due loan portfolio increased from 44.5% to 4.7%.
• This was due to proactive credit underwriting strategies and the anticipated dynamics in the private payroll product portfolio.

Efficiency and Cost Management:

• The efficiency ratio decreased from 48.4% to 45.5%, reflecting a nearly 300 basis points improvement within the year. Total expenses rose 25% year-over-year.
• The improvements were due to a digital approach, process optimization, disciplined cost initiatives, and renegotiating contracts with major vendors to reduce transaction costs.

Sentiment Analysis:

Overall Tone: Positive

• Management highlighted 'outstanding year of growth and profitability,' 'record-breaking performance,' and 'remarkable market share gains.' The CEO expressed strong confidence: 'I firmly believe our platform is at the best moment ever, which gives me a lot of confidence that 2026 will be another excellent year for Inter.'

Q&A:

• Question from Mario Pierry (Analyst): Concerns about the 60/30/30 plan's efficiency ratio progress and potential changes to guidance.
  Response: CEO reaffirmed commitment to the plan, noted strong progress (ROE 15%, clients 43M, efficiency 45%), and expects 2026 to be a great year. He highlighted technology, AI, and disciplined expense growth as key efficiency drivers.

• Question from Mario Pierry (Analyst): Strategy and expectations for dividend payments given capital consumption and growth.
  Response: CEO stated the company has maintained a 20% dividend payout ratio for three years and expects this trend to continue, provided it does not impact growth. CFO noted the bank still consumes capital but is moving toward neutrality, with excess capital optimally held at the holding level.

• Question from Tito Labarta (Analyst): Reasons for fee income headwinds and expectations for future growth.
  Response: CFO attributed fee compression to strong NII growth (45% YOY) and one-off impacts (e.g., Intershop pressure, accounting changes). He expects fee income to normalize and grow in 2026 through initiatives like hyper-personalization and conversational sales.

• Question from Tito Labarta (Analyst): Details on Inter Loop expenses and fee expense growth outlook.
  Response: CFO acknowledged Loop expenses as a tool for client engagement and sales (e.g., activating primary accounts, incentivizing credit sales), and stated the company keeps an eye on expenses while optimizing for net income.

• Question from Yuri Fernandes (Analyst): Analysis of provisioning, Stage Three formation, and cost of risk outlook.
  Response: CFO explained asset quality is as expected, with private payroll cohorts maturing into NPLs and real estate seeing a one-time Stage Three balance adjustment. He guided cost of risk for 2026 to be between 5.5% and 6%, focusing on risk-adjusted NIM maximization.

• Question from Pedro Leduc (Analyst): Growth drivers and outlook for private payroll loans, including NPL trends.
  Response: CFO detailed private payroll growth (BRL 2B, ~500k clients, 5% market share) driven by digital distribution and cross-selling. He noted NPLs are converging to above 10% but below initial plans, with collection improvements expected to help.

• Question from Gustavo Schroden (Analyst): Expectations for 2026 in loan growth, NIM, and efficiency ratio.
  Response: CFO declined to provide formal guidance but outlined trends: targeting 25-30% loan growth (high end of range), continued NIM expansion from portfolio repricing, and efficiency improvement from operational leverage and AI initiatives.

• Question from Gustavo Schroden (Analyst): Competitive advantage in private payroll and strategy to sustain growth amid competition.
  Response: CEO cited advantages: large digital client base, low funding costs, and non-cannibalistic distribution. He emphasized proceeding with caution, improving collateral processes, and executing on the 'Inter by design' win-win model.

• Question from Neha Agarwala (Analyst): Impact of increased bank competition on private payroll originations and client acquisition mix.
  Response: CFO reported a healthy start to the year with growing volumes. Client acquisition is a mix: ~1/3 from active clients (cross-selling), ~1/3 from inactive clients (activating), and ~1/3 from new clients opening accounts.

• Question from Neha Agarwala (Analyst): Impact of lower interest rates on loan segments and margins, and details on global expansion license.
  Response: CFO stated the company is neutral to rate changes due to ALM hedging, with short-term positive impact on liabilities offset by longer-term compression from new loans. CEO announced a U.S. branch license approved in Florida, enabling direct offering of checking, investing, and mortgage products, focusing initially on Latino/immigrant communities.

• Question from Marcelo Mizrahi (Analyst): Impact of international investments on expenses and efficiency, and outlook for credit card growth.
  Response: CEO noted international expansion expenses are largely incurred, with future costs tied to client acquisition versus revenue generation. CFO expects credit card growth in 2026 to be in line with or better than 2025, driven by matured products, improved modeling, and conversational sales.

Contradiction Point 1

Competitive Outlook for Private Payroll Loans

Contradiction on whether competition from banks is a current concern.

How has increased bank competition affected private payroll originations and the client breakdown between cross-sell and new clients? - Neha Agarwala (Analyst)

2025Q4: Growth is supported by a healthy mix: ~1/3 from active clients (cross-sell), ~1/3 from inactive clients (reactivation), and ~1/3 from new clients. - [Santiago (Xande)](CFO)

Is 20% net fee growth still a fair expectation, and has increased competition emerged from other players as private payroll becomes more viable? - Neha Agarwala (Analyst)

2025Q3: Competition is not yet a concern. Inter sees itself in a 'sweet spot' with a massive client base... The private payroll market is large (~BRL 250-300B TAM), and Inter is capturing demand aggressively... - [João Vitor Menin](CEO) & [Alexandre Riccio](CFO)

Contradiction Point 2

Growth Expectations for Credit Cards

Contradiction on the planned aggressiveness of credit card exposure growth.

What are the 2026 expectations for loan growth, NIM, and efficiency ratio? - Marcelo Mizrahi (Analyst)

2025Q4: Growth in 2026 is expected to be in line with or better than 2025, driven by mature products, improved modeling, and conversational sales. - [Santiago (Xande)](CFO)

What actions contributed to credit cards becoming sustainably profitable, and should we expect faster penetration now that economics are healthier? - Pedro Leduc (Analyst)

2025Q3: While confident in underwriting, the company does not plan to 'massively grow' credit card exposure. Growth is targeted at a balanced 30% year-over-year for the overall credit portfolio, maintaining a cautious, disciplined approach... - [João Vitor Menin](CEO)

Contradiction Point 3

Strategy and Expectations for Fee Income Growth

Contradiction on the primary driver and target for fee income growth.

What caused the headwinds to fee income growth this quarter, and when will it align with loan growth? - Tito Labarta (Analyst)

2025Q4: Fee income ratio compressed to 25% (from 30% in 2024) due to strong net interest income growth. - [Santiago (Xande)](CFO)

How do investments in insurance and the global account support reaccelerating fee income growth? - Marcelo Mizrai (Analyst)

2025Q3: A 25% annual growth rate for fees is seen as a reasonable target going forward. - [João Vitor Menin](CEO)

Contradiction Point 4

Private Payroll Loan Delinquency Outlook

Contradiction on expected delinquency rates for private payroll loans.

What factors are driving private payroll loan growth (channels, ticket size, rates), and will this growth sustain through 2026? Additionally, what are the current NPL trends? - Pedro Leduc (Analyst)

2025Q4: Delinquency is converging toward >10% (vs. initial plan of 15%) but is expected to **decrease** as collection solutions are implemented. - [Santiago (Xande)](CFO)

What are the expectations for the private payroll product and how can Inter's UX and hyper-personalization enhance its success? - Eduardo Rosman (Analyst)

2025Q2: Delinquency rates are better than expected (**single-digit vs. initial 15% forecast**). - [Alexandre De Oliveira](CEO)

Contradiction Point 5

Efficiency Ratio Targets

Contradiction on the timeline and achievement of the efficiency ratio target within the 60/30/30 plan.

How do you feel about your 60/30/30 plan, and what changes or improvements do you anticipate for the efficiency ratio? - Mario Pierry (Analyst)

2025Q4: The 60/30/30 plan... improving efficiency from 73% to 45%... **2026 is expected to be a great year for progressing toward the plan’s KPIs**. - [João Vitor](CEO)

What factors differentiate your optimism on private payroll guarantees compared to other banks, can you maintain 10% market share if pricing is pressured, and how do you expect the efficiency ratio to evolve? - Mario Pierry (Analyst)

2025Q2: The new efficiency ratio (excluding JCP tax) **reached a record 47.1%**. - [Santiago Stel](CFO)