- App uptake explodes by 500% in
- Company currently valued at $1.7bn after achieving “unicorn” status in
- Plans to continue operating smoothly throughout EU after Brexit
Fast-rising international money transfer star Revolut plans to double its London HQ headcounts over the coming two years after its cash transfer app’s turnover grew spectacularly in 2017 to hit nearly £13m – an increase of no less than 500%.
The firm, used by ever-rising numbers of individual consumers to send money abroad rapidly and cheaply, achieved “unicorn” status in April this year after a new funding round pushed its valuation above the $1bn mark.
Offering innovative money transfer online services has proven immensely successful for the startup, which was launched just three years ago by a group that included its current Russian-born CEO, Nikolay Storonsky. At the time, numerous pre-paid card operators were appearing on the market with the aim of disrupting traditional high street banks by providing inexpensive cross-border payment services to individual consumers. Since then, Revolut has been on a frankly hyperactive mission to diversify, moving into the cryptocurrency sector, insurance and small business banking. Its current value stands at $1.7bn, and counting.
Last year, the company says that it processed $1.5bn-worth of customer transactions every month, a staggering increase on the comparatively modest $200m per month it achieved the previous year. Between 2016 and 2017, the number of people using its app tripled to 1.3m.
It may seem somewhat surprising to find that, despite these successes, Revolut actually made an overall loss of £14.8m. However, it seems this wasn’t accidental. The company has been steadily expanding into international markets, including the massive US market where it’s on course to open two offices before the close of 2018 – developments which of necessity eat up a lot of investment money.
As reported in the UK’s Times newspaper, Mr Storonsky is adamant that his firm’s stellar growth has been driven by its efforts to place the customer at the heart of everything it does. He said: “Our customers have come to trust that we will always innovate and disrupt the financial industry for their benefit.”
Storonsky added that Revolut was on course to expand its revenue to approximately £50m this year.
A company spokesman confirmed that the startup’s existing headcount of 200 people in its London base will double by 2020. Revolut also now employees 200 additional staff globally and is currently actively pursuing an e-money licence in Luxembourg. Once, as seems likely, that’s granted, the firm will be able to offer its money transfer services throughout the EU, even if Britain exits the trading bloc without a deal.
The licence application, the spokesman acknowledged, was designed to minimise any potential disruption to its European trading operations after formal Brexit in March next year. The company is also actively pursuing a European banking licence in Lithuania, which would permit it to “passport” its services across the European Union after Britain’s withdrawal in 2019. Storonsky told the London Financial Times that he was confident that Lithuania would grant the licence by October this year.
In the background, the UK Government has pledged to safeguard Britain’s stature as a leading international hub for fintech forms after the country’s withdrawal from the EU. However, Revolut seems to be taking no chances and is keeping its EU options open.
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