Revolut wins French banking licence for second EU hub

Revolut Bank S.A. has been granted a full banking licence in France following a joint assessment by the Autorite de Controle Prudentiel et de Resolution and the European Central Bank, with the decision formally adopted by the ECB Governing Council, the company said in a statement on August 10. It is the fintech’s second full banking entity in the European Union.

The French entity will operate alongside Revolut Bank UAB in Lithuania under what the company describes as a dual-hub model, with both supervised by the ECB. Revolut serves about 30 million customers across Western Europe and more than 75 million globally, according to the release.

“Our focus now turns to execution,” said Beatrice Cossa-Dumurgier, chief executive for Western Europe at Revolut, adding that the company will begin with customers in France before expanding progressively across the region. Service will extend in phases to Germany, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain.

A full banking licence, rather than an e-money or payment institution licence, allows Revolut to offer a broader range of regulated banking services directly to French customers under domestic and EU rules, according to The Paypers. The company has committed more than 1 billion euros to Western Europe over the past year, plans to recruit over 600 staff across the region, and intends to open a Western European headquarters in Paris in 2027.

The French unit is likely to launch with restrictions on new products and lending similar to those applied to the Lithuanian entity, Bloomberg reported on July 21, citing people familiar with the matter. The ECB imposed those measures on Revolut Bank UAB last year. Revolut did not reference any product restrictions in its announcement, and Payment Expert noted that neither the company nor its supervisor has publicly resolved the question.

The licence follows a series of regulatory approvals Revolut has secured during 2026, including a UK banking licence in March, a full Australian deposit-taking licence in July, and authorisations in Mexico, Peru and the United Arab Emirates. Revolut applied for the French licence in July 2025, having announced its intention at the Choose France summit in May of that year.