Chime Files For IPO, Betting On Gen Z To Power Fintech's Market Comeback

Zinger Points:

Chime reports a $13 million Q1 profit after narrowing 2024 net loss to $25 million — a
Some 76% of Chime's revenue still comes from interchange fees despite efforts to diversify.
With $518 million in 2024 marketing spend, Chime doubles down on Gen Z growth ahead of IPO.

Digital banking disruptor Chime has filed for an IPO, positioning itself as the first major fintech to test public markets after a period of market uncertainty, particularly influenced by President Donald Trump‘s recent tariff policies.

The San Francisco-based neobank reported $518.7 million in revenue and $12.9 million in net income for the first quarter of 2025, a 32% year-over-year increase, according to its registration statement filed last week with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. While profit dipped slightly from the previous quarter, the company's operational momentum and 8.6 million active members underscore its readiness to go public.

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The IPO, underwritten by Morgan Stanley MS, Goldman Sachs GS, and JPMorgan Chase JPM, could value the company between $20 billion and $25 billion, based on projections in the filing.

The timing is strategic. Chime's IPO comes just weeks after trading platform eToro's successful public debut. Founded in 2012, Chime has raised $2.65 billion from blue-chip investors including SoftBank, General Atlantic, and Tiger Global — a war chest that helped it capture 18 million account holders. Chime's appeal to digital-native, mobile-first users makes its move particularly bold, as it targets a segment that has historically been underserved by traditional banks yet increasingly drives financial innovation.

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According to registration statement, Chime posted $2.1 billion in revenue in 2024 — a 38% increase from the prior year — while narrowing its net loss from $203 million to $25 million. Other metrics also point to strong engagement: 78% of users log in daily, and 43% use its early paycheck access feature.

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But risks loom. While the company hasn’t disclosed share count or pricing, analysts note Chime's continued dependence on interchange fees — 76% of total revenue in 2024, down from 80% two years earlier — could expose it to regulatory shifts, Forbes reported. Its young user base also maintains lower average balances than traditional bank customers, according to the SEC filing. The company, which plans to list on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol CHYM, is aiming to go public later this year.

The Tariff Wildcard

The IPO landscape showed tentative signs of revival in March, when AI infrastructure firm CoreWeave Inc. CRWV's successful debut broke a prolonged tech listing drought. That momentum stalled abruptly in April, as Trump's renewed tariff threats on Chinese imports rattled markets. Klarna, StubHub, and initially even Chime, postponed their offerings, according to media reports. Now, Chime's decision to proceed positions it as a test case for whether fintechs can navigate the current geopolitical climate to access public markets. The move comes just weeks after eToro's well-received listing, Bloomberg reported, suggesting cautious optimism may be returning to the sector.

Market observers will be watching how the IPO’s structure takes shape in the coming weeks, especially given the involvement of bulge-bracket underwriters. As the first fintech to test Wall Street's appetite in this new era of trade tensions, Chime's performance could set the tone for a wave of public offerings — or reinforce investor caution.

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