Revolut launches full-fledged bank in Britain - after a year and a half of restrictions

British fintech company Revolut, Europe's most valuable startup, said on March 11 that it had received a full banking license in the United Kingdom. This will allow it to start full-fledged operations as a bank in the country and launch full-fledged accounts for British customers after several years of waiting, Reuters notes.

The decision by UK regulators, the agency points out, lifted restrictions on Revolut's UK banking license, which had been in place since 2024.

Revolut, which is used by around 13 million customers in the UK and has no physical branches, was granted a UK banking license with restrictions in July 2024 after a three-year approval process. Since then, the company has been in what is known as the "mobilization" phase, a preparatory period in which banks set up systems and infrastructure before fully launching operations, Reuters explains.

Now the restrictions have been lifted - and Revolut has been "authorized to launch a UK bank," the company said in a release. Revolut also said it will begin launching bank accounts for new customers in the U.K. "within a few days." Migrating existing users to the new banking format will take "several months," the company estimated.

By obtaining a full banking license, Revolut will be able to offer its UK customers credit products that are already available to users in Europe, Bloomberg notes. In addition, Revolut's UK customers will be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which covers deposits of up to £120,000 ($160,550) in the event of a bank failure.

"Launching our bank in the UK has been a long-term strategic priority for Revolut and is an important milestone in the company's growth. The UK is our home market and a key driver of our growth," said co-founder and CEO Nick Storonsky.

Revolut already has banking licenses in a number of other countries. In 2025, Revolut obtained a banking license in Mexico, secured approval for a bank in Colombia and acquired a bank in Argentina. In Brazil, Revolut operates under a credit license.

The long-awaited receipt of a license in the UK will allow Revolut to compete more broadly in the home market with such banks as Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest Group and Barclays, notes Bloomberg. The license is also expected to make it easier for the company to obtain new regulatory approvals in other countries, especially in the U.S., the agency points out( Revolutapplied for a U.S. banking license on March 5).

In January, Revolut also launched its first bank outside Europe, in Mexico. In addition, Revolut requested a banking license in Peru in early 2026. Bloomberg also wrote that the company is in talks to buy little-known local neobank FUPS in Turkey.

Revolut, which has no physical branches, first applied for a banking license in the U.K. in 2021. It operated as a restricted bank in the country until the Bank of England's regulator, the Prudential Regulation Authority, was satisfied that the company was ready to function as a full-fledged lender. That process usually takes about a year, but this was the first time a company of Revolut's size had requested authorization, Bloomberg notes. At that point, the company could test its banking systems on a limited number of customers, while most users continued to be served through the less-regulated e-money structure.

The fintech has had several stock sales in 2025 that have resulted in a valuation of $75 billion - versus $45 billion in 2024.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor