The London-based digital bank Revolut has today announced that it has been granted a European banking licence, after applying for one over a year ago.
While the licence has been secured, it will take somewhere between three and six months for Revolut to begin using its banking licence across Europe, where it will focus initially on the United Kingdom, France and Poland. It plans to offer services including full current accounts, consumer lending, and commission-free stock trading.
The new banking licence will allow its customers to start depositing their salaries, which will be protected up to €100,000 under the European Deposit Insurance Scheme. Revolut will also begin to work on offering overdrafts, and personal and business loans at competitive rates.
Founded in 2015, Revolut initially drew in customers by letting them spend and transfer money abroad with the real exchange rate. Since then, the company has attracted over three million customers with spending overviews, budgeting controls, and savings features available on its app.
To date, Revolut has raised approximately $340 million in investments, from notable venture capital firms including Index Ventures, Ribbit Capital, Balderton Capital and DST Global. The fintech is currently opening over 8,000 new current accounts each day, and processes over $4 billion in transactions each month.
Nik Storonsky, Founder & CEO of Revolut, said: “With the banking licence now secured, commission-free stock trading progressing well and five new international markets at final stages of launch, we are living up to our reputation as the “Amazon of banking”. Our vision is simple: one app with tens of millions of users, where you can manage every aspect of your financial life with the best value and technology.”
“Our vision is that retail and business customers will be able to apply for a loan in just two minutes from within the app, and then have the money in their account almost instantly. We’ll remove the bureaucratic process and come in cheaper than traditional lenders.”
