The Best Financial Stocks to Buy With $1,000 Right Now

It might seem like a risky time to invest in financial stocks. As interest rates decline, traditional banks will generate less interest from their new loans and attract fewer savers. As the gap between their earned interest and paid interest shrinks, their profits will decline.

However, higher-growth fintech companies -- which attract users with a broader range of digital banking services -- could still be great long-term investments as they draw customers away from those older banks. Let's take a look at two of those stocks -- SoFi (NASDAQ: SOFI) and Nu (NYSE: NU) -- and how they could turn $1,000 into a lot more money over the next decade.

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SoFi

SoFi, founded in 2011, initially offered only student loans. It subsequently expanded its online platform into a "one-stop shop" for auto loans, mortgages, personal loans, credit cards, insurance policies, stock and crypto trading tools, and other banking services. To further expand its ecosystem, it acquired the digital payment processing company Galileo in 2020 and launched its own direct bank after obtaining a U.S. bank charter in 2022.

SoFi's digital-native approach enabled it to expand much faster than conventional brick-and-mortar banks. It also attracted many younger Millennial and Gen Z customers. At the end of 2021, it had 2.5 million members with 1.9 million products in use. By the third quarter of 2025, it had grown to 12.6 million members with 18.6 million products in use. Galileo, which operates independently from SoFi's core platform, hosts nearly 160 million accounts.

SoFi kept expanding even as a temporary freeze on student loan payments and rising interest rates throttled its growth. However, those headwinds are dissipating, and it's rolling out more fee-based services to reduce its exposure to interest rate swings.

From 2025 to 2027, analysts expect SoFi's revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) to grow at a CAGR of 23% and 38%, respectively. With an enterprise value of $31.5 billion, it looks reasonably valued at 19 times this year's adjusted EBITDA -- and it could soar a lot higher as the fintech market expands.

Nu Holdings

Nu, which was founded in 2013, owns NuBank -- the top direct bank in Latin America. Like SoFi, Nu grew faster than brick-and-mortar banks by attracting younger customers. A large percentage of Latin America's adult population was also unbanked when NuBank arrived, and it convinced many of them to eschew traditional banks in favor of its online platform.

From the end of 2021 to the third quarter of 2025, NuBank's customer base more than doubled from 53.9 million to 127.0 million, as its activity rate (its ratio of active customers to total customers) expanded from 76% to 83%. It launched more lending services, integrated e-commerce services, and cryptocurrency trading tools to support that expansion.

Nu's three largest markets are Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. It hasn't expanded into other smaller Latin American markets yet, but its recent application for a U.S. bank charter could pave the way toward its eventual expansion into the U.S. market.

From 2025 to 2027, analysts expect Nu's revenue and earnings per share (EPS) to grow at a CAGR of 30% and 37%, respectively. Nu's stock might not seem like a bargain at 46 times this year's earnings, but it could still have plenty of upside potential.

According to IMARC Group, Latin America's fintech market will expand at a CAGR of 15.1% from 2026 to 2034 as income levels and internet penetration rates rise. As an early mover in that growing market, Nu could still gain tens of millions of new users over the next decade.

Leo Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Nu Holdings. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.