Short for Social Finance Inc., SoFi is a personal finance company and online bank headquartered in San Francisco. It is much more than a typical online broker: it offers banking, investing, crypto, insurance, personal loans, student loan refinancing, mortgages and credit cards, all in one app used by more than 12 million members.
Given that mix, the question comes up often: what are the SoFi countries? Is SoFi international beyond the United States?
This article covers where SoFi is available, what has changed in the last year, and the alternatives for international investors.
What is SoFi?
Before SoFi went public in 2021, CEO Anthony Noto defined his ambition for the company as a “one-stop shop”. It targets the gap between traditional retail banks and online brokerages by putting banking, investing and lending in a single app. SoFi has held a national bank charter since 2022, which means SoFi Bank, N.A. is a real bank with FDIC-insured deposits, not a fintech sitting on top of a partner bank.
Its services fall into four categories: banking, investing, insurance and lending.
- Banking means a combined checking and savings account. The savings side pays up to 3.10% APY for members with eligible direct deposit, a variable rate. Other perks include no monthly fees, no overdraft fees, cash back on debit card purchases at participating retailers and access to more than 55,000 fee-free ATMs. Since 2025, members can also send money abroad from the app;
- Investing comes in three flavours: active, automated and retirement. Active means self-directed trading in stocks and ETFs, with fractional shares and access to IPOs. Automated is the robo-advisor, which builds a portfolio of ETFs for you. For US investors there are also retirement accounts, Traditional and Roth IRAs;
- Crypto came back in November 2025 after a two-year absence. SoFi Bank became the first nationally chartered, FDIC-insured US bank to offer crypto trading, with more than 25 coins including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana, bought directly from your checking or savings balance. The trading fee is 1%, and the crypto itself is not FDIC insured;
- Insurance covers auto, life, homeowners and renters. SoFi does not underwrite any of it, acting as a distributor for specialist partners;
- Lending is the original business and still the broadest: student loans and refinancing, personal loans, consolidation loans, auto loans, credit cards and mortgages.
Is SoFi international? Is SoFi available outside the US?
SoFi operates in the United States and Hong Kong, and to open an account you have to live in one of the two.
SoFi went international in April 2020 by acquiring the Hong Kong investing app 8 Securities, now SoFi Hong Kong. Six years later, that is still the only market outside the United States, and the two operations are separate businesses with different products. SoFi Hong Kong is a broker regulated locally, offering commission-free trading in US and Hong Kong stocks and ETFs, with its own fee schedule. It is not the American everything app in Cantonese.
The reason the US side cannot travel is structural. SoFi Bank, N.A. is a nationally chartered US bank, so opening an account requires a Social Security number or an ITIN, a US address and US tax residency. That rules out non-residents no matter how the application is framed.
One thing that did change: SoFi used to be unable to move money across borders at all. Since 2025 it has offered international money transfers from the app to more than 30 countries, settled over blockchain rails, with the fee and exchange rate shown before you confirm. This is worth being precise about, because it is the detail most articles still get wrong: you can now send money abroad with SoFi, but you still need to be a US resident to hold the account in the first place. Traditional international wires remain unsupported.
There is no published timeline for expansion into other markets. In the meantime, US members can use a SoFi debit or credit card anywhere Mastercard is accepted.
That still leaves international investors, perhaps such as yourself, unable to open a SoFi account. In the next section, we cover what we think are the best alternatives.
Best SoFi alternatives for banking, investing and lending
If you are looking for a one-stop shop but do not live in the USA or Hong Kong, these providers can help:
eToro
One of the largest social investing platforms in the world, with more than 40 million registered users and a focus on stocks, ETFs and crypto. ETF trades carry no commission (other fees apply).
Disclaimer: eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.
Interactive Brokers
A highly regarded platform available in more than 200 countries, and the closest thing to a global broker. It offers far more than a digital bank: short selling, mutual funds, bonds, options and automated portfolio tools, plus a debit Mastercard in some markets. Clients in the European Union are onboarded to Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited, regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
Revolut
The closest match to the SoFi model outside the US, combining accounts, cards, investing, crypto and savings in one app, across several plans. It is a licensed bank in the EEA and, since March 2026, in the UK too, where eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS.
Wealthsimple
The Canadian answer to SoFi: cash accounts with a card, commission-free stock and ETF trading, crypto, managed portfolios and tax filing, all in one place.
Vivid
A German app that combines an account, cards and investing in stocks, ETFs, crypto and precious metals, available across the EEA. Personal accounts are still open, although the company now focuses mainly on businesses and freelancers.
N26
A German digital bank with a full banking licence and deposits covered up to €100,000, available in 24 European countries. It leans on banking rather than investing, with several plan tiers.
Cash App
A no-nonsense money transfer service that combines instant transfers, a debit card, commission-free stock trading and bitcoin. It operates in the United States only, after closing its UK service in September 2024.
Cleo
A budgeting app powered by an AI assistant rather than an investing app. It offers budgeting help, a spending account, a debit card and access to small short-term advances, in the United States.
In the table below, we have covered which regions are served by which alternatives.
| Alternative | Services offered | Accepted countries or regions |
| eToro | Investing | Worldwide, with exceptions that include Canada, Japan and Hong Kong |
| Interactive Brokers | Investing, debit card | More than 200 countries and territories |
| Revolut | Investing, digital banking | European Economic Area, United Kingdom, Switzerland, United States, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Japan, Singapore, and Mexico on a waiting list |
| Wealthsimple | Investing, digital banking | Canada |
| Vivid | Investing, digital banking | European Economic Area |
| N26 | Digital banking | 24 European countries, including Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland |
| Cash App | Investing, digital banking | United States |
| Cleo | Budgeting, digital banking | United States |
Availability checked with each provider in September 2026. Coverage changes often, so confirm on the provider’s site before signing up.
Bottom line
Is SoFi international? Barely. Six years after buying its way into Hong Kong, the United States is still the only market where the full product exists, and the American bank charter that makes SoFi so complete at home is exactly what keeps it from travelling.
What did change is that SoFi is no longer a closed box: members can now send money to more than 30 countries from the app, and crypto trading returned in November 2025 under the bank charter. Useful if you live in the US, irrelevant if you do not.
Its main competitor, Revolut, shows what the alternative strategy looks like: build globally first and add the licences market by market. Time will tell whether SoFi broadens its borders. Until then, the alternatives above cover the same ground in most countries.
FAQs
Can I make an international transfer using SoFi?
Yes, since 2025. SoFi Checking and Savings members can send money from the app to more than 30 countries, with the fee and the exchange rate shown before the transfer is confirmed. Traditional international wire transfers are still not supported, and the service is only available to SoFi members, who must be US residents.
Can I use the SoFi card internationally?
As a US member, yes. You can use the SoFi card anywhere Mastercard is accepted, and SoFi does not charge its own foreign transaction fee.
Can a non-US citizen use SoFi?
SoFi is open to US citizens and lawful permanent residents. Because SoFi Bank is a nationally chartered US bank, you need a Social Security number or an ITIN and a US address to open an account. SoFi Hong Kong is a separate business and requires a Hong Kong passport or permanent resident ID.
Is there a SoFi Canada?
No, SoFi is not available in Canada. Wealthsimple is the closest local equivalent, combining banking, commission-free investing and crypto in one app.
Is there a SoFi Europe or SoFi UK?
No, SoFi does not provide services to residents of Europe or the UK, and it has not announced any plans to. Revolut, N26 and Vivid are the closest European equivalents.
Does SoFi offer crypto?
Yes. SoFi relaunched crypto trading in November 2025, two years after shutting it down while it pursued its bank charter. Members can buy, sell and hold more than 25 coins directly from their checking or savings balance, with a 1% fee per trade. The crypto itself is not covered by FDIC insurance, unlike the cash in the bank accounts.
Is SoFi a real bank?
Yes. SoFi has held a national bank charter since 2022, and deposits held at SoFi Bank, N.A. are FDIC insured. That is what allows it to pay interest on savings, lend directly and, since 2025, offer crypto trading as a bank.
