The Chime app is the most downloaded in the US in the online banking category. In the first half of 2021 alone, 6.4 million installations were recorded on mobile devices. In comparison, Current's rival app, which occupies the second line in the ranking, has been downloaded 2.7 million times. Moreover, the bank's customers are also growing: in February 2021, it reached 12 million, increasing by 4 million during the year.
In 2020, the company managed to triple its revenue to $600 million compared to the previous year. In September 2020, a round of F investments was held in which Chime raised $533.8 million. The G round added a further $750 million to the fund. In total, the investment has amounted to more than $2 billion throughout the whole existence of the fund. According to Reuters, at the IPO, Chime may receive a valuation of $30 billion. SoftBank, Sequoia Capital Global Equities, General Atlantic, Tiger Global and Dragoneer Investment Group were the investors in the latest round.
Back in September 2020, Chris Britt, CEO of Chime, announced plans for a public offering. According to him, the company will need at least a year to prepare for the IPO.
The exact date of the IPO is still unknown. However, in March 2021, Chime held preliminary talks with investment banks regarding an IPO on the stock market. The offering is expected to take place in the second half of 2021. Over the past year, Chime has significantly increased its workforce. This surge in hiring is an indirect sign that an IPO or outside financing is imminent.
The popularity of online banks, including Chime, has been growing steadily, also due the influence of the pandemic. In doing so, they try to choose banks that have easy to use applications and Chime was among them. According to The Financial Brand, the total number of online banking customers in the US could exceed 20 million by the end of 2021, rising to 39.1 million by 2025, with Chime firmly leading the digital banking ranking in terms of customers and mobile app users.
There is also a global trend of growth in the volume of digital banking transactions. While in 2019, the market for online transactions was estimated at $836.5 billion, with the beginning of the pandemic, it increased sharply by 81% to $1.5 trillion. Experts predict that the development will continue, and by 2025 the volume of online transactions will be about $8.3 trillion.
