Revolut closes funding round and achieves bumper valuation

At $5.5 billion, Revolut is now one of the most valuable fintechs in the world. The digital bank has more than 10 million customers globally. Since launch, Revolut has processed more than one billion transactions worth over $130 billion

Digital bank Revolut has been valued at $5.5 billion after closing its latest funding round.

London-headquartered Revolut’s series D funding round, led by US-based investor TCV, closed at $500 million, taking the digital bank’s total amount raised since launch to $836 million.

At $5.5 billion, Revolut is now one of the most valuable fintechs in the world. The digital bank has more than 10 million customers globally. Since launch, Revolut has processed more than one billion transactions worth over $130 billion.

Revolut said the new capital was secured on the back of high customer demand and engagement and a strong financial performance last year.

In 2019, Revolut increased customer growth by 169%, the number of daily active customers by 380%, and saw financial revenues in 2018 grow by 354%.

Revolut plans to use the new capital to strengthen its core retail and business offering in existing markets, with a particular focus on product development that will help accelerate daily usage of accounts.

Future plans include lending services for retail and business customers, extending high interest savings accounts beyond the UK, further improving customer service, and rolling out banking operations across Europe.

Revolut will also focus on further developing its ‘Premium’ and ‘Metal’ subscription accounts, which have proven to be a successful revenue stream for the business, growing by 154% last year. The accounts include a variety of benefits for customers, such as unlimited foreign exchange, airport lounge access, commission-free stock trading and travel insurance.

The digital bank plans to continue investing in the expansion of its workforce across multiple locations. It now employs more than 2,000 people, and last year made a number of senior appointments across the business in order to scale up its governance.

Last year, Revolut appointed Martin Gilbert, the former co-chief executive of Standard Life Aberdeen, as chairman of the board. Caroline Britton, a former audit partner at Deloitte, and Bruce Wallace, former chief operations officer at Silicon Valley Bank, were both appointed as non-executive directors.

Commenting on the new investment, Nik Storonsky, founder and chief executive officer at Revolut, said: “We’re on a mission to build a global financial platform—a single app where our customers can manage all of their daily finances, and this investment demonstrates investor confidence in our business model.”

“Going forward, our focus is on rolling-out banking operations in Europe, increasing the number of people who use Revolut as their daily account, and striving towards profitability. TCV has a long history of backing founders who are changing their industries on a global scale, so we are excited to partner with them as we prepare for the next stage of our journey.”

John Doran, general partner at TCV, continued: “We are delighted to partner with Nik, Vlad and the entire Revolut team. Using a modern technology stack and with a relentless focus on delighting customers, Revolut has built a truly exceptional customer experience that is exceeding anything that existing banks can offer. We look forward to supporting the team on their journey to build Revolut into one of the biggest financial services companies in the world.”

Image: Revolut

Mark Dugdale