Inter & Co. Inc. (NASDAQ:INTR) reported record second-quarter 2026 profitability as revenue growth, higher net interest margins and operating leverage supported its “Rule of 50” framework, which combines revenue growth and return on equity.
Total net revenue increased 32% year over year, while return on equity reached 16.3%, Global CEO João Vitor Menin said. Net income rose to a record BRL 421 million, extending the company’s streak to 13 consecutive quarters of net-income growth. The company also reported its first quarter of capital neutrality, meaning it generated more capital than it consumed to fund growth, according to management.
Revenue, margins and lending expand
Chief Financial Officer Santiago Stel said net interest income has grown at roughly 40% year over year for eight consecutive quarters. Net interest margin reached 10.1%, the highest level in the company’s history and the first time it exceeded 10%.
Stel attributed the margin expansion to continued capital deployment into higher-return products, personalized pricing changes across products including buy now, pay later, Pix Credit and private payroll loans, and lower interest rates on LCIs. He also cited a tailwind from the company’s inflation hedge.
During the question-and-answer session, Stel said the reported quarterly NIM included approximately 15 basis points of benefit related to an inflation timing effect, while the prior quarter was affected by approximately 15 basis points in the other direction. The company continues to expect annual NIM to increase about 40 basis points from the prior year, he said.
Inter’s expanded loan portfolio reached BRL 55.4 billion, up 5% sequentially and 29% from a year earlier. The new expanded-portfolio measure includes private securities such as CDBs and debentures alongside lending products. Management said these investments represent client deposits deployed into market-originated credit and are part of its strategy to improve returns on equity.
The company’s total assets surpassed BRL 100 billion for the first time. Funding totaled BRL 77.2 billion, up 24% year over year, while the cost of funding stood at 66% of CDI, which Stel described as one of the industry’s lowest and most stable levels.
Client engagement and product adoption
Brazil CEO Alexandre Riccio said Inter ended the quarter with 45.3 million clients and added 3.7 million active clients over the past 12 months. The company averaged 22 million daily logins during the quarter, compared with 18 million a year earlier.
Riccio said Inter has become more selective in acquiring customers, focusing on clients that engage more quickly and generate higher average revenue per active client, or ARPA. New customer cohorts begin with initial ARPA roughly BRL 10 higher than older cohorts, he said.
Cards and Pix total payment volume reached an annualized BRL 1.8 trillion. Inter said it now handles about 9% of Pix transactions in Brazil, gaining 31 basis points of share over the past year. It also exceeded 2% market share in Brazilian credit-card payment volume for the first time.
Inter continued to emphasize secured lending, including mortgages, home equity and payroll-linked loans, while selectively expanding unsecured products such as credit cards, Pix Credit and buy now, pay later. Mortgages and home equity grew at an average rate of 40% since the second quarter of 2025, Stel said.
Private payroll loans reached more than 600,000 clients. Riccio said those customers generate ARPA that is 3.7 times the company average. The company plans to launch insurance for private payroll borrowers in August, which it expects could reduce provisions and add fee revenue.
Business accounts totaled 2.9 million, up 24% year over year. Riccio said business clients generate 2.8 times the ARPA of the average customer. Inter also pointed to subscription plans, investment advisory services, Inter Ads, card interchange, acquiring and credit insurance as potential drivers of faster fee-income growth.
Credit quality remains a focus
Management said it is deliberately accepting more risk in certain unsecured portfolios in pursuit of higher risk-adjusted returns. Credit-card interest income increased 64% year over year as the company shifted the portfolio toward interest-earning balances and installment usage. Stel said revenue growth in the credit-card book is outpacing provisions.
Private payroll loans accounted for more than half of the year-over-year increase in nonperforming loans, Stel said. Delinquency has remained higher for longer than the company expected because of operational maturity issues, rather than deterioration in the product itself, he said.
Riccio said Inter is implementing its own employee relinkage process, preparing insurance and introducing tools for loan renegotiations and credit-policy adjustments. Even at current delinquency levels, Stel said private payroll loans are generating return on equity of about 30%.
Inter changed its credit-card write-off policy from 360 days past due to 330 days past due, citing accounting practices under Brazil’s Resolution 4966 and low recoverability after 330 days. Stel said the change reduced the overall NPL ratio by about 30 basis points but had no impact on cost of risk because those loans were already fully provisioned by that point.
The coverage ratio stood near 134%, down from a prior level of 146% as private payroll loans matured. Stel said a coverage ratio of roughly 130% to 135% is a reasonable assumption for the coming quarters, although the outcome will depend on loan-product mix.
Efficiency and capital position
Operating expenses rose 19% year over year, below the 32% increase in revenue. Headcount remained near 4,000 employees, the same level as four years ago, according to Stel. The efficiency ratio improved to a record low of 42.1%.
Personnel costs rose 18%, driven primarily by profit sharing, while depreciation and amortization increased 44% as Inter amortized prior investments in its Super App. Administrative expenses increased 15%, which management said was broadly aligned with growth in clients and transaction volumes.
At the holding-company level, Inter held BRL 2.3 billion in excess capital available for deployment in the bank. Its holding-level Basel ratio was 19.3%.
Menin said Inter remains confident in its ability to expand lending at roughly 30% or more for years while managing credit risk through product mix, underwriting and its low-cost digital distribution model.
About Inter & Co. Inc. (NASDAQ:INTR)
Inter & Co, Inc Is a holding company, which engages in the provision of financial products and services. It operates through the following segments: Banking, Securities, Insurance Brokerage, Marketplace, Asset Management, Service, and Other. The Banking segment offers checking accounts cards, deposits, loans and advances, and other services through mobile application. The Securities segment is involved in the acquisition, sale and custody of securities, the structuring and distribution of securities in the capital market, and the provision of administration services to investment funds.
