Do Americans prefer national neobanks? Finbold released data showing that in the first half of 2021 Chime was the most downloaded digital-first banking app in the United States, with 6.4 million new installs.
Current ranked second at 2.7 million installs, followed by Varo at 1.95 million and Step at 1.94. Close behind was Albert, with 1.9 million downloads.
Other notable challenger banks with significant installs include Dave (1.8 million), Money Lion (0.85 million), Oxygen (0.34 million), Simple (0.21 million), N26 (0.17 million).
The first ten neobanks and digital banks apps had 16.33 million installs in the first six months of 2021. Revolut was on the 11th spot, after its debut in the U.S. in March 2020.
Why are American neobanks growing that quickly?
Chime and Varo were approved to distribute federal stimulus packages: digital banks appeared to transmit funds quickly and this could have helped them gain more users. And that was definitely an advantage against foreign neobanks.
