Key Takeaways:

• Revolut has finally received a full UK banking license after a five-year wait.
• The license allows Revolut to offer full banking services and stronger deposit protection for UK customers.
• Crypto trading on Revolut remains separate and uninsured.

Revolut, a London-based financial technology company (fintech) that offers digital banking and cryptocurrency services through a mobile app, became a fully licensed UK bank on 11 March 2026. 

The milestone came after the Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), the body that oversees UK banks, lifted all restrictions on its banking license. The approval ends a five-year wait and unlocks a broader range of services for its 13 million UK customers.

Revolut first applied for a UK banking license in 2021. The process took longer than expected: a restricted license eventually arrived in July 2024, entering the company into a “mobilization” phase. This is a testing stage that new banks must complete before fully operating. It typically lasts 12 months, but extended well beyond that in Revolut’s case. 

During this period, Revolut could hold only £50,000 (about $67,000) in total customer deposits within its UK banking unit. The delays were reportedly due to accounting concerns, EU regulatory breaches, and questions about its corporate culture. 

What changes and doesn’t change for UK customers

Revolut has created a new entity, Revolut Bank UK Ltd., regulated jointly by the PRA and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). 

Eligible customer deposits are now protected up to £120,000 (about $160,000) per person under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), a government-backed program that reimburses depositors if a bank fails.

Previously, UK users held money in e-money accounts, digital payment accounts without the same legal protections as a bank deposit. This prevented many from making Revolut their primary banking account.

The rollout will happen in phases. New current accounts will initially go to a small group before wider access over the coming weeks.

Existing customers will be migrated to the new bank over the next few months, with at least two months’ notice via email or in-app. The majority of the day-to-day features will stay the same, with the Revolut app continuing to show earlier statements and transactions. Account numbers, sort codes, and IBANs will remain unchanged as well.

Savings balances will also remain with partner banks, each covered by its own FSCS limits.

Crypto services will stay separate

Revolut’s crypto buying, selling, and trading will continue through the main Revolut app’s built-in crypto services, as well as the separate Revolut X app. However, these will remain outside the FSCS coverage. This means crypto holdings are not insured the way bank deposits are.

Separately, the FCA has selected Revolut to take part in a regulatory sandbox – a controlled testing environment – for stablecoins tied to traditional currencies such as the US dollar or British pound. This is part of the UK’s broader effort to build rules for digital asset payments.

A launchpad for global growth

The UK license underpins a larger push. Revolut has pledged £3 billion (about $4 billion) in UK investment and 1,000 high-skilled jobs in the country. It also announced a £10 billion (about $13 billion) global investment over the next five years and a goal of entering 30 new markets by 2030. 

Earlier on 5 March 2026, Revolut also applied for a US banking license, with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

Founded in 2015 as a money transfer app, Revolut now serves roughly 70 million customers globally and is valued at approximately $75 billion.