UK’s Revolut, considered one of Europe’s most valuable fintech, is set to launch its services in India in 2025, focusing on tens of millions of top-tier consumers, according to a report by The Financial Times.
Founded in 2015 by Nikolay Storonsky and Vlad Yatsenko, Revolut Group Holdings Ltd is a global neobank (a digital-only financial institution) and financial technology company that offers banking services for retail customers and businesses.
The London-based company, which set up operations in India in 2021, received in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India earlier this year to issue prepaid cards and wallets. It has been testing these products internally and is nearing the final stages of preparation, Paroma Chatterjee, CEO of Revolut India told FT.
India is considered a critical market for Revolut’s global expansion with the company targeting India’s top 10-15 per cent of consumers. Chatterjee has described this group as the “global India”, this includes those who travel, use international services like Netflix and Apple products, and have international connections.
Revolut is looking to diversify its revenue base, with more than 90 per cent of its 2023 sales coming from Europe. The company currently holds an EU banking license from Lithuania and recently secured a UK banking license. Revolut is also expanding into West Asia, as well as India. Additionally, the fintech has applied for e-money and remittance licenses in the United Arab Emirates.
India’s fintech sector has grown rapidly, supported by government-backed infrastructure like the India Stack, which facilitates digital payments and services. However, profitability remains a challenge due to the country’s low gross domestic product per capita. Revolut aims to focus on profitability rather than blindly scaling up in the competitive Indian market.
After a strong financial year in 2023, with a pre-tax profit of 438 million pounds, Revolut is aiming for full authorisation from the RBI next year and plans to launch domestic and multi-currency cards alongside its app.
First Published: Sep 17 2024 | 1:43 PM IST