Revolut has been granted a European banking licence by the Bank of Lithuania, bringing it closer to its stated goal of becoming the 'Amazon of Banking'.
The firm says it will begin operations in early 2019, initially focusing on smaller European countries, before eventually passporting to key markets including the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Poland. The new bank will offer a range of traditional baking services, including full current accounts, consumer lending and commission-free stock trading.
Customer funds deposited at the bank will be protected to the tune of €100,000 under the European Deposit Insurance Scheme. The company says it plans to offer standard overdraft facilities as well as personal and business loans at competitive rates.
Nick Storonsky, founder and CEO of Revolut says: “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.”
Revolut will provide a formidable competitor to banking incumbents, having grown astronomically over the three years since launch by nibbling away at traditionally high-cost financial services, such as cross-border money transfers.
The company says it is opening between 8,000 and 10,000 current accounts daily and transacting over $4 billion per month in volumes. In terms of revenues, Revenues have increased fivefold year on year and even with monthly break-even attained last year.
Says Storonsky: “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.”
Revolut has also announced plans to expand beyond Europe, with the United States, Canada, Singapore, Japan, Australia and New Zealand all expected to launch in early 2019.