Revolut is the digital banking alternative designed for your global lifestyle.

Summary[1]

Consumers and businesses worldwide are being underserved by expensive banks with dated technology. A survey of 9,000 bank customers in nine countries revealed that 77% of customers globally are unsatisfied with their bank.

We're creating a world where money moves freely at your pace, wherever you are. Revolut is a digital banking alternative designed for a global lifestyle. You can set up a current account in 60 seconds, hold and exchange 16 currencies at the interbank exchange rate, make free international money transfers to any bank in the world and spend fee-free globally with a contactless MasterCard. In just two years, Revolut has acquired more than 750,000 customers who have transacted over $4.2 billion.

The fast-moving Fintech has also launched a business platform that enables companies to hold, exchange and transfer 25 currencies at interbank rates and issue corporate cards for global fee-free spending. 12,000 global companies and scaling start-ups.

Operations[1]

Revolut was launched in July 2015 by ex-finance professionals who have a distinctive ambition to build the future of money beyond banking. The idea came from a common frustration with exchange rate mark-ups, foreign transaction fees and a lack of technological innovation from the big banks.

Banks charge insane fees to spend or transfer your money in a foreign currency. A typical UK bank customer is charged up to £25 to transfer $500 to a bank in the United States with an exchange rate mark-up of 3-5%. For international card payments, banks charge as much as 6% on every transaction.

Today’s hyper-connected world deserves a financial partner just as progressive. One that adapts to your needs, gives you control and constantly pushes you into new exciting spaces. Revolut is a new Global Banking Alternative that enables free international money transfers, fee-free global spending - always at the interbank exchange rate.

What is the mission of Revolut?

Their main goals are to:

1. Make banking services more convenient: Revolut aimed to simplify and streamline traditional banking processes, offering a user-friendly mobile app and various features that allowed customers to manage their finances more efficiently.

2. Offer low-cost currency exchange: Revolut's app provided users with the ability to exchange and spend money in different currencies at interbank exchange rates without additional fees.

3. Facilitate cryptocurrency trading: Revolut was one of the early fintech companies to allow users to buy, hold, and exchange cryptocurrencies through their platform.

4. Enhance financial control and budgeting: The app offered tools for tracking expenses, setting budgets, and providing insights into users' spending habits, helping them manage their finances better.

5. Provide a global presence: Revolut aimed to expand its services to various countries, offering international money transfers and borderless banking solutions to individuals and businesses worldwide.

What is the vision of Revolut?

Key components of Revolut's vision include:

1. Accessibility: Revolut wanted to make financial services accessible to everyone, regardless of their location, income level, or financial background. By offering a wide range of services and eliminating unnecessary fees, they aimed to democratize finance and provide better financial opportunities for their customers.

2. Innovation: Revolut sought to stay at the forefront of financial technology by continuously innovating and introducing new features and products. This included expanding into areas such as cryptocurrency, investment products, and business banking to cater to evolving customer demands.

3. Global Reach: The vision of Revolut was to expand its services worldwide, providing seamless and borderless financial solutions to customers in different countries. Their international money transfer capabilities and multi-currency accounts were part of this strategy.

4. Financial Control and Empowerment: Revolut's vision was centered on empowering its users to have greater control over their finances. By offering budgeting tools, spending insights, and customizable account features, they aimed to help customers make informed financial decisions and improve their financial well-being.

5. Disruption of Traditional Banking: Revolut's ultimate vision was to challenge and disrupt the traditional banking model, offering an alternative that embraced digital technologies and customer-centric solutions.

Substantial accomplishments to date[1]

In just two years, Revolut has grown to over 750,000 active users who have transacted over $4.2 billion to date. An average of 1,700 new customers sign up every day.

As a testament to the product, Revolut’s user acquisition is primarily driven by recommendations from friends and family. For an early growth comparison, TransferWise - a well-known Fintech unicorn launched in 2011 - only processed €10 million in client funds in their first year.

This crowdfunding is part of a $66m investment round from some of Europe's most well-known Venture Capital firms including Index Ventures, Balderton Capital and Ribbit Capital. The hot Fintech startup has also regularly attracted the attention of international media, with regular coverage in the Telegraph, Times, Financial Times and CityAM.

In July 2015, Revolut’s £1m crowdfunding campaign was oversubscribed by over 10,000 would-be-investors who pledged to invest £17m, all of whom were Revolut users.

Revolut was also notably:

- Nominated alongside Pokémon Go and WeChat for ‘The Best Overall Mobile App’ award at the largest Mobile Conference in the world.

- Selected from over 1,500 European FinTech’s to be named on the ‘Fintech50 2017’ list of the hottest European startups.

- Awarded the ‘Hottest FinTech Startup’ award at the Europas 2017.

Monetisation strategy[1]

Revolut has 3 main revenue streams: (1) MasterCard© interchange (2) consumer add-ons and (3) business accounts.

Revolut gains a cut of the revenue from the fee (interchange) paid to MasterCard© by merchants in order to process their payments.

In April 2017, Revolut launched an annual, paid Premium service which costs £6.99 per month or £72 per year. Over 10,000 customers signed up within the first two months, with droves of new customers joining every week. Other revenue streams include Revolut credit which can be accessed from the app. Revolut also promotes new game-changing start-ups in the app and gains a fee for every Revolut customer who signs up.

Revolut for Business is a subscription-based web service that enables companies to manage international payments and corporate travel. Over 12,000 FTSE 100 companies and scaling start-ups are currently being on-boarded.

Use of proceeds[1]

The funds raised will be used in two ways: (1) International expansion and (2) product development.

Starting in 2017, the fast-growing startup will be expanding internationally, with the aim of establishing itself as the number one platform for consumers and businesses for managing their finances. Revolut intends to initially expand its services across North America and Asia.

The equity raised will be used to hire a world-class team of International Expansion Managers, paying for the infrastructure and relevant licensing required to operate across new territories and to accelerate customer acquisition globally.

Revolut will also use the funds raised to accelerate product development for its consumer and business products. Currently some of Revolut’s services are made available in the Revolut app via partnerships with licensed third-parties. The funds raised will enable Revolut to apply for licences to provide these products in-house, which should in-turn increase profit.

Financials

Financial Statement

Year 1 2 3 4 5 6
Year End Date 31/12/2018 31/12/2019 31/12/2020 31/12/2021 31/12/2022 31/12/2023
Historic/Forecast Historic Historic Historic Historic Historic Forecast
All Values in £000
Revenue 58,240 162,722 219,931 636,205
Growth over Prior Year 353.90% 179.40% 35.16% 189.27%
Cost of Sales (68,319) (177,911) (148,063) (196,015)
Gross Profit (10,079) (15,189) 71,638 440,190
Margin (17.31%) (9.33%) 32.57% 69.19%
Administrative Expenses (23,975) (92,249) (274,701) (367,478)
Depreciation and

Amortisation Expense

0 0 (9,629) (9,079)
Impairment Credit/(Loss) 0 0 220 (1,034)
Other Operating Income/(Expense) 0 0 6,781 (3,508)
Operaitng Profit (34,054) (107,438) (205,461) 59,091
Margin (58.47%) (66.03%) (93.42%) 13.42%
Interest Expense (16) (1,249) (17,373) (21,026)
Interest Income 1,107 2,052 2,129 1,726
EBIT (32,963) (106,815) (220,705) 39,791
Margin (56.60%) (65.64%) (100.35%) 9.04%
Tax Expense 132 915 (2,917) (13,451)
Net Income (32,831) (105,900) (223,622) 26,340
Margin (56.37%) (65.08%) (101.68%) 5.98%
Other Comprehensive Income/(Loss) (40) (603) 38,331 (6,635)
Total Comprehensive Income (32,871) (106,503) (185,291) 19,705
Margin (56.44%) (65.45%) (84.25%) 4.48%

Balance Sheet

Year 1 2 3 4 5
Year End Date 31/12/2018 31/12/2019 31/12/2020 31/12/2021 31/12/2022
All Values in £000
Assets
Current Assets
Cash & Cash Equivalents 1,103,996 2,450,107 5,055,023 7,052,609
Financial Assets at FVOCI 0 0 0 1,236,481
Investment in Commodities at FVTPL 0 0 50,366 66,356
Trade and Other Receivables 0 0 153,242 206,880
Inventories 3,553 13,042 11,282 7,396
Current Tax Assets 0 0 3,856 7,291
Loans & Advances to Customers 41,442 59,089 415 4,870
Derivative Financial Assets 0 0 121 9,294
Total Current Assets 1,103,996 2,522,238 5,274,305 8,591,177
Non-Current Assets
Property, Equipment & Right-of-Use 3,856 11,940 37,497 25,128
Intangible Assets 37,012 93,927 411 721
Loans & Advances to Customers 0 0 961 12,946
Deferred Tax Assets 0 0 345 1,783
Total Non-Current Assets 40,868 105,867 39,214 40,578
Total Assets 1,144,864 2,628,105 5,313,519 8,631,755
Liabilities
Current Liabilities
Trade & Other Payables 0 0 143,663 165,248
Loans at Amortised Cost 21,935 45,259 81,812 122
Customer Liabilities 927,685 2,362,385 4,637,230 7,361,196
Current Tax Liabilities 0 0 1,670 9,374
Lease Liability 0 0 5,985 5,161
Derivative Financial Liabilities 0 0 1,970 2,454
Total Current Liabilities 949,620 2,407,644 4,872,330 7,543,555
Non-Current Liabilities
Loans at Amortised Costs 1,173 123,247 0 0
Provisions for Liabilities 0 905 1,788 1,812
Lease Liability 0 0 18,943 9,085
Deferred Tax Liabilities 0 0 18 243
Total Non-Current Liabilities 1,173 124,152 20,749 11,140
Total Liabilities 950,793 2,531,796 4,893,079 7,554,695
Equity
Share Capital 0 0 0 0
Share Premium 247,677 248,814 697,444 1,287,452
Accumulated Losses (56,444) (162,947) (344,300) (317,960)
Other Reserves 1,838 10,442 67,296 107,568
Total Equity 194,071 96,309 420,440 1,077,060
Total Liabilities & Equity 1,144,864 2,628,105 5,313,519 8,631,755

Cash Flow Statement

Year 1 2 3 4 5
Year End Date 31/12/2018 31/12/2019 31/12/2020 31/12/2021 31/12/2022
All Values in £000
Operating Activities
EBIT (32,963) (106,815) (220,705) 39,791
Interest Expense (16) (1,249) 17,373 21,026
Interest Income 1,107 2,052 (2,129) (1,726)
Operaitng Profit (34,054) (107,438) (205,461) 59,091
Amortisation of Intangible Assets 0 13 174 176
Depreciation of Tangible Assets 478 1,319 9,455 8,903
Impairment of Intangible Assets 0 0 0 7,278
Impairment of Financial Assets 0 0 (220) 1,034
Share Based Payment Expense 1,868 8,626 57,182 47,351
Fair Value Losses on Customer

Liabilities in Respect of Cryptocurrencies

49,161 63,887 38,659 0
Increase in Provisions Net of

Payments Made

0 0 10,625 6,913
Net Fair Value Losses on Derivative

Financial Instruments

26,501 7,549 1,850 (8,689)
Operating Cash Flows BeforeChanges in Customer Balances& Hedging Arrangements &Changes in Working Capital 43,954 (26,044) (87,736) 122,057
Working Capital Movements
Decrease in Inventories 2,961 9,488 1,760 3,886
Loans Extended to Directors 0 0 0 (3,200)
Loans Settled by Directors 0 0 0 3,216
Increase in Trade & other Receivables 0 0 (27,337) (69,468)
Increase in Trade & other Payables 0 0 (1,147) 94,489
Operating Cash Flows BeforeChanges in Customer Balances& Hedging Arrangements 46,915 (16,556) (114,460) 150,980
Customer Balances & Hedging Arrangements
Net Increase in E-Money in Issue 702,671 1,378,558 2,263,427 2,174,430
Increase in Negative Customer Balances 0 0 (7,687) (8,186)
Decrease in Net Settlement Balances 0 0 17,447 (63,979)
Increase in Customer Liabilities in

Respect of Cryptocurrencies

0 0 136,142 0
Increase in Cryptocurrencies 22,742 56,128 (135,970) 0
Increase in Customer Liabilities in

Respect of Commodities

0 0 49,904 15,543
Increase in Investment in Commodities

at FVTPL

0 14 (50,366) (15,990)
Net Increase in Loans & Advances

to Customers

0 0 (1,389) (16,440)
Net Increase in Customer Deposits (7,923) 10,696 49,875 533,970
R&D Credit 0 0 1,342 3,856
Tax (482) (2,060) (301) (9,901)
Effect of Exchange Rates (676) (32) 0 0
Net Operating Cash Flows 659,779 1,279,292 2,207,964 2,764,283
Investing Activities
Purchases of Property & Equipments (3,931) (9,404) (6,236) (1,684)
Developing or Acquiring

Intangible Assets

0 (85) (6) (5,168)
Interest Received 1,107 2,052 2,129 1,726
Purchase of Financial Assets at FVOCI 0 0 0 (1,242,842)
Net Investing Cash Flows (2,824) (7,437) (4,203) (1,247,968)
Financing Activities
Proceeds from Issue of Ordinary Shares

Net of Transaction Costs

181,143 0 448,535 601,878
Proceeds from Exercise of Share Options 0 137 95 0
Interest Paid (Including on Lease Liabilities) (16) (452) (18,329) (19,213)
Principal Payments on Lease Liabilities 0 0 (3,759) (4,740)
Loans Repaid 0 119,456 (37,734) (81,690)
Net Financing Cash Flows 181,127 119,231 388,808 496,235
Cash & Cash Equivalents (Beginning of Year) 220,914 1,059,001 2,462,986 2,592,568
Effect of Exchange Rates 5 20 (531) (14,964)
Net Increase in Cash & Cash Equivalents 838,082 1,391,086 2,592,568 2,012,550
Cash & Cash Equivalents (End of Year) 1,059,001 2,450,107 5,055,023 7,052,609

Actions

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To contact Revolut, click here.

References and notes


  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Source: the company and Seedrs.