(5 May 2022 – United Kingdom) Revolut’s crypto approach and the Russia-Ukraine war have stifled the group’s ambition for a United Kingdom (UK) banking license.
The crucial missing element for the US$33 billion Fintech to attain global “super app” status, co-founder and CEO Nikolay Storonsky anticipated gaining a license by Q1 2022 however British regulators are still undecided. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has also further complicated matters as it has cast the spotlight on the group’s Russian links. Storonsky is Russian and Revolut has an office in Moscow that is in the process of closing
A UK bank license would allow Revolut to offer loans and overdraft protection in addition to existing money transfers, store purchases, equity trading and pet insurance offerings. Revolut was granted a banking license for the European Union (EU), applied for a license in the United States in 2021 and operates as a bank in ten geographies.
“We take our regulatory and compliance obligations extremely seriously. We have constructive, productive relationships with over 22 regulators around the world and our relationships with UK regulators are among the most long-standing” a Revolut spokesman stated.