Revolut’s long wait for a banking licence finally comes to an end

After more than three years, Revolut’s wait for a banking licence is finally over after it received authorisation from the banking watchdog.

Revolut said it would now enter the ‘mobilisation‘ stage, designed for new lenders to complete the build out of their operations before the full market launch.

During this period, banks face a range of restrictions, such as a £50,000 limit on total customer deposits. It noted that “nothing changes” for customers during this period.

When it fully enters the market, the fintech will be able to offer products like mortgages and credit cards alongside its existing e-money services.

Nik Storonsky, chief executive of Revolut, said: “We are incredibly proud to reach this important milestone in the journey of the company and we will ensure we deliver on making Revolut the bank of choice for UK customers.”

The fintech’s UK boss,  Francesca Carlesi, said it was a “tremendous responsibility” to be a bank in the UK.

“We will work relentlessly to offer products and services that improve the financial lives of everyone who uses Revolut,” Carlesi dded.

In its 2023 set of financial results, the firm posted a pre-tax profit of £438m for the year, swinging from a £25.4m loss. Revolut’s banking app now boasts more than 40m users globally, while its UK customer base recently hit 9m

The company filed for a banking licence way back in January 2021.

The process generally takes a year, but regulators were wary, given the criticism of Revolut’s corporate culture and the delayed filing of its accounts.