Challenger bank wins long-awaited licence after years of regulatory scrutiny
Revolut has secured a full UK banking licence, clearing the way for the British fintech to operate as a fully fledged bank in its home market and offer deposit accounts protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
The Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has lifted the “mobilisation” restrictions attached to the licence initially granted in 2024, allowing Revolut Bank UK Ltd to begin taking customer deposits onto its own balance sheet and expand its range of banking products.
Revolut said its new UK bank entity is authorised and supervised by both the PRA and the Financial Conduct Authority, bringing it under the same core prudential and conduct regimes that apply to established high-street lenders.
The firm plans to roll out current accounts to customers gradually over the coming weeks, starting with a smaller cohort before expanding to its full UK user base, which now stands at about 13 million.
Existing users will continue to access services through the Revolut app, with the company notifying eligible customers as their accounts are migrated from Revolut Ltd to Revolut Bank UK Ltd.
A key change is the introduction of FSCS protection for eligible deposits held with the new bank. Revolut said UK-based customers whose accounts are moved onto Revolut Bank UK Ltd will have deposits covered by the FSCS up to £120,000 per person, bringing its protection limit above the standard £85,000 threshold that applies across most of the UK banking market.
Savings accounts provided through partner banks will continue to be protected separately under the FSCS via those third‑party institutions.
“Launching our UK bank has been a long-term strategic priority for Revolut, and marks a significant moment in our journey,” founder and chief executive Nik Storonsky said.
The decision ends a multi‑year regulatory saga for Revolut. The company first applied for a UK banking licence in 2021 and was granted a restricted licence in 2024, entering an extended mobilisation phase during which it could test banking systems but was constrained in the volume of deposits it could hold and the activities it could undertake.
Regulators had delayed a full approval amid concerns that the firm’s risk controls were not keeping pace with its rapid growth.
During that period, Revolut continued to operate in the UK as an e‑money institution while running fully licensed banks in other markets, notably across the European Economic Area via a Lithuanian banking licence.
The new UK licence brings its home operations into line with its status in much of continental Europe, and places it in the same category as domestic rivals such as Monzo and Starling, which already hold full UK banking licences.
Revolut said eligible UK personal, joint, Kids & Teens and certain business accounts would be transitioned to current accounts with the UK bank over the coming months, with account numbers, sort codes and app functionality remaining unchanged during the process. Customers who do not wish to move to the new entity will have the option to close their accounts.
The authorisation also paves the way for Revolut to expand into lending and other balance‑sheet based products in its domestic market, an area where it has been constrained relative to fully regulated banks.
Industry analysts said the move is likely to intensify competition in UK retail finance, adding another large, digitally focused player with its own regulated balance sheet to a market already under pressure from incumbents and challenger banks.
Revolut, founded in 2015 and last valued at around €65 billion in private funding rounds, now counts about 70 million customers worldwide and has set an ambition to reach 100 million users across 100 markets.
The company has signalled that it plans to use the UK decision as a platform for further banking licence applications, including in the United States, where it recently sought a national charter to offer insured deposits and lending products.
