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Revolut reported record profits last year as the UK fintech reaped the rewards from higher interest rates and an aggressive expansion plan.
The London-based company said on Tuesday that it made a pre-tax profit of £438mn in 2023, up from a loss of £25mn the previous year. Its revenues almost doubled to £1.8bn.
“Our diversified business model continues to demonstrate resilience, with robust growth across various business units,” said chief executive officer Nikolay Storonsky. “This growth was fuelled by the introduction of new products and the addition of millions of new customers.”
However, the SoftBank-backed company has yet to be awarded a UK banking licence more than three years after submitting an application to regulators.
Its application has been stalled by problems including a warning from auditors that they could not full verify revenue figures in the group’s 2021 accounts. A UK banking licence would allow the fintech to widen the products and services it can offer in its biggest market.
Founded by Storonsky and Vlad Yatsenko in 2015, Revolut has pursued an aggressive international expansion and outstripped the growth of rival UK-based challenger banks including Monzo and Starling.
Despite the prolonged uncertainty over a UK licence, the fintech is currently targeting a valuation of more than $40bn in a share sale, the Financial Times reported last month. That would eclipse the $33bn valuation Revolut achieved in a 2021 fundraising.
The company last month announced plans to move its headquarters to one of the most prominent buildings in Canary Wharf, where it has been based since it was founded.
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