Digital bank closes at US$37.11 after raising US$864m, valuing company at US$18.4bn
Shares in Chime Financial (NASDAQ: CHYM) surged 37.44% on Thursday to close at US$37.11, following a much-anticipated Nasdaq debut that saw strong investor demand and marked one of the largest US fintech listings in recent years.
The San Francisco-based neobank raised US$864 million in its initial public offering, selling 32 million shares at US$27, above its marketed range of US$24–26. The stock opened at US$43, peaked at US$44.94, and finished the day with a market capitalisation of US$18.4 billion on a fully diluted basis.
The listing comes after years of IPO delays and a steep valuation reset for late-stage fintechs. Chime was last privately valued at US$25bn in 2021.
“We’re just scratching the surface on this enormous business opportunity,” said CEO Chris Britt, who has focused the company’s growth on the 200 million Americans earning under US$100,000 a year. “Our goal is to be number one in primary and recurring direct deposit accounts in that segment — and we’re not going to stop there.”
Strong fundamentals underpin debut
Founded in 2012, Chime partners with regulated banks to offer mobile-first, no-fee financial services including early direct deposits and overdraft protection. It does not hold a banking licence but earns revenue from interchange fees when users swipe their Chime-issued debit cards.
The company posted Q1 2025 revenue of US$519 million, up 32% year-on-year, and reported net income of US$13 million — its first profitable quarter. Annual revenue rose to US$1.673bn in 2024 from US$1.278bn in 2023, while adjusted EBITDA for Q1 was US$25.1m.
Chime said it had 8.6 million active users as of 31 March and processed US$121 billion in annual purchase volume. The IPO was more than 20x oversubscribed, according to Bloomberg, with lead underwriters Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and J.P. Morgan exercising the option to purchase an additional 4.8 million shares.
From near-collapse to Nasdaq bell
Chime’s public debut is especially remarkable given its early struggles. In 2016, the company was nearly out of cash after being rejected by more than 100 investors while seeking a Series A extension. The turning point came when Lauren Kolodny of Aspect Ventures (now Acrew Capital) took a chance, investing at just 26 cents per share.
That bet has now paid off handsomely. Kolodny was invited to ring the opening bell at Nasdaq, in what co-founder Ryan King described as a full-circle moment.
“She believed in our passion and zeal at a time when nobody else would,” said King. “It was the only term sheet we had at the time.”
A wider reopening for fintech IPOs?
Chime’s strong debut follows other successful recent offerings — including Circle and Voyager — and could help thaw a long-frozen IPO market for high-growth fintech firms. Klarna, Gemini, Cerebras, and Medline are among the closely watched unicorns in the pipeline.
Still, analysts caution that the window may be brief. “A strong debut could trigger a domino effect,” said Kat Liu at IPOX. “But there’s no guarantee the window stays open.”
