Revolut wins conditional US banking approval

Revolut has received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for a United States banking licence, the company announced on September 3, according to Yahoo Finance. The approval moves the British fintech closer to operating as a national bank in the country.

The decision would eventually allow Revolut to offer loans, credit cards and insured deposits to US customers directly. The company said it is working with authorities toward launching the US bank in 2027. It has until now relied on partnerships with American banks to provide banking services to its customers there.

Conditional approval is not a licence to open. Institutions granted it must satisfy the regulator’s remaining requirements, including capital and operational conditions, before receiving final authorisation and beginning to take deposits.

The approval is the latest in a series of regulatory decisions in Revolut’s favour this year. The company received a full French banking licence on August 10 from the Autorite de Controle Prudentiel et de Resolution and the European Central Bank, establishing a second European Union banking hub alongside its Lithuanian entity. It also secured a full Australian deposit-taking licence in July, a UK banking licence in March, and authorisations in Mexico, Peru and the United Arab Emirates.

Revolut reports more than 75 million customers globally. Several digital asset and fintech companies have pursued OCC charters over the past year, among them Circle, which received full approval for Circle National Trust Bank, and Bridge, the Stripe-owned stablecoin unit, which obtained conditional approval in February.