Inter & Co Bypasses ADR System to Offer Direct Nasdaq Access
By listing directly on the Nasdaq, Brazilian digital banking giant Inter & Co has cut out traditional ADR fees and friction for global retail investors.
A quiet shift in how international retail investors access Latin America's largest economy is gaining fresh momentum. Belo Horizonte-based digital banking giant Inter & Co has changed the traditional playbook for foreign investment by bypassing the complex American Depositary Receipt (ADR) system entirely. By migrating its primary listing directly to the Nasdaq, the company has allowed foreign retail investors to buy and trade its shares seamlessly on a major U.S. exchange.
For decades, investing in Brazilian companies from abroad required navigating ADRs—certificates issued by a U.S. bank representing shares in a foreign company. These instruments often carry extra administrative fees, custody charges, and liquidity constraints that eat into investor returns. Inter & Co, which operates a financial "SuperApp" combining banking, credit, insurance, and e-commerce, restructured its corporate setup to list directly under the ticker INTR, giving everyday global investors the same frictionless access they have to domestic U.S. equities.
This direct-access model is landing well on Wall Street as the company proves its financial maturity. Analysts recently upgraded the stock, pointing to a successful transition from a high-burn user acquisition phase to a highly profitable digital ecosystem. According to its Q2 2026 earnings report, Inter & Co achieved a record quarterly net income of 421 million reais ($81 million), representing a 34% increase quarter-over-quarter and marking 13 consecutive quarters of net income growth.
Led by Chief Executive Officer João Vitor Menin, the digital bank has expanded its active customer base to over 45 million users. By avoiding the traditional ADR structure, the company has positioned itself to capture direct retail trading flows in the U.S., making it a unique test case for other Latin American tech firms looking to attract global capital without intermediary friction.
What it touches
The direct-listing structure of Inter & Co (INTR) makes it uniquely sensitive to retail trading flows in the United States compared to traditional Brazilian financial ADRs like Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) or Banco Bradesco (BBD). Because it trades directly on the Nasdaq, INTR is highly exposed to broader shifts in global fintech sentiment and changes in U.S. interest rates, while remaining deeply tied to the health of the Brazilian consumer and local credit cycles.