Raphael Stevens

Digital banking unicorn Revolut said Thursday that net profit for the year ending Dec. 31, 2024, totaled £1.1 billion ($1.5 billion), up 149% year over year.
The financial milestone arrives as Revolut is preparing a transition to becoming a fully operational bank in the U.K. after securing a banking license last summer.
Revolut’s U.K. CEO previously said she sees views the journey to full banking authorization as a crucial step in global expansion and an eventual IPO.

Revolut CEO Nikolay Storonsky at the Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal, Nov. 7, 2019.
Pedro Nunes | Reuters

LONDON — British fintech firm Revolut on Thursday announced it topped $1 billion in annual profit for the first time, a major milestone for the company as it readies the launch of its U.K. bank later this year.
Revolut, which offers a range of banking and financial services via an app, said that net profit for the year ending Dec. 31, 2024, totaled £1.1 billion ($1.5 billion), up 149% year over year. Revenues at the company increased 72% year on year to £3.1 billion, driven by growth across different revenue streams.

Revolut’s wealth unit — which includes its stock and crypto-trading businesses — saw outsized growth, with revenue surging 298% to £506 million, while subscriptions turnover jumped 74% to £423 million.
Revolut also saw significant growth in its loan book, which grew 86% to £979 million. Coupled with a jump in customer deposits, this contributed to a 58% increase in interest income, which totaled £790 million.

UK bank rollout

Revolut’s financial milestone arrives at a critical time for the almost decade-old-firm. The digital banking unicorn has been preparing a transition to becoming a fully operational bank in the U.K. after securing a banking license last summer.

It was granted a banking license with restrictions in July 2024 from the U.K.’s Prudential Regulation Authority, bringing an end to a lengthy application process that began back in 2021.
The restricted license means that Revolut is now in the “mobilization” stage, where it is focusing on building out its banking operations and infrastructure in the run-up to a full launch. The period typically lasts about 12 months.

Revolut is still awaiting approval from regulators to transfer all 11 million of its U.K. users to a new banking entity this summer. Once fully up and running, the firm will be able to begin offering loans, overdrafts and mortgages, opening up the path to new income streams.

‘Customers trust banks’

Victor Stinga, Revolut’s chief financial officer, told CNBC on Thursday that the company’s aim is to formally launch its U.K. bank later this year.
“As you can imagine, at this scale, it’s a thorough process, and we just pay a lot of attention to it,” Stinga said. “We work very closely on a close contact with the PRA [Prudential Regulation Authority] and the FCA [Financial Conduct Authority] on it. We feel like we’re making great progress on it.”
Stinga said that a big advantage of becoming a bank in the U.K. is ability to start accepting deposits protected by government guarantees. Licensed banks are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which means their customers can claim up to £85,000 if a lender goes out of business.
“Customers trust banks, so it means customers on this transition will use Revolut as a primary bank account,” Stinga said.
Lending is arguably “the biggest roadmap item that this unlocks,” Revolut’s CFO said, adding that the firm is looking at launching credit cards and personal loans, similar to the products it already offers in the European Union under a separate EU banking license.
Francesca Carlesi, Revolut’s U.K. boss, previously told the Wall Street Journal that Revolut views its journey to becoming a U.K. bank as a crucial step in its global expansion and eventual IPO. “My main strategic focus is making Revolut the primary bank for everybody in the U.K.,” she told the WSJ.
It has a steep hill to climb — rivals Monzo and Starling have had a lengthy head start on Revolut. Monzo obtained its full banking license in 2017, while Starling was granted its own permit in 2016. More

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Although recent months have seen fewer Asian tourists in America, for a certain type of visitor it is peak season. Trade negotiators from India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam have been rushing to Washington in the hope of signing a trade deal that will avert President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, which are due to be implemented on July 9th. More

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“At present there are absolutely no negotiations on the economy and trade between China and the U.S.,” said Ministry of Commerce Spokesperson He Yadong.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week indicated that there might be an easing in tensions with China.
“If the U.S. really wants to resolve the problem … it should cancel all the unilateral measures on China,” He said.

Steel piled up at Guoyuan Port in Chongqing, China, on April 20, 2025.
Cfoto | Future Publishing | Getty Images

BEIJING — China on Thursday said that there were no ongoing discussions with the U.S. on tariffs, despite indications from the White House this week that there would be some easing in tensions with Beijing.
“At present there are absolutely no negotiations on the economy and trade between China and the U.S.,” Ministry of Commerce Spokesperson He Yadong told reporters in Mandarin, translated by CNBC. He added that “all sayings” regarding progress on bilateral talks should be dismissed.

“If the U.S. really wants to resolve the problem … it should cancel all the unilateral measures on China,” He said.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week indicated that there might be an easing in tensions with China. The White House earlier this month added 145% tariffs on Chinese goods, to which Beijing responded with duties of its own and increased restrictions on critical minerals exports to the U.S.
The commerce ministry’s comments echoed those of Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun, who said on Thursday afternoon that there were no ongoing talks, according to state media.
Both spokespersons held to the official line that China would be willing to talk to the U.S. subject to Beijing being treated as an equal.

“China definitely wants to see the trade war deescalate, as it hurts both economies,” said Yue Su principal economist, China, at The Economist Intelligence Institute. “However, due to the inconsistency of Trump’s policies and the lack of clarity around what he actually wants, China’s strategy has shifted from focusing on ‘what you need’ to ‘what I need.’ Their request for the U.S. to cancel ‘unilateral’ tariffs reflects that shift.”

China earlier this week threatened countermeasures against countries that might make deals with the U.S. at the expense of Beijing’s interests.
“We also need to recognize that this is a ‘whatever it takes’ moment for China in terms of U.S.-China relations,” Su said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if China adopts a more hawkish stance if the U.S. continues to escalate tensions.”
Several Wall Street banks have cut their China GDP outlook in the last few weeks in light of the tariffs and escalating tensions with the U.S.
The Commerce Ministry on Thursday emphasized government and business efforts to help companies sell goods meant for exports to the Chinese market instead.
“From China’s perspective, any meaningful negotiations will likely require the US to reduce tariffs to the previous 20% or even lower level,” said Jianwei Xu, senior economist for Greater China, at Natixis.
“But for the Trump administration, however, reducing tariffs too far could raise uncomfortable questions: What was the point of the confrontation if we end up back where we started?”
The U.S. is China’s largest trading partner on a single-country basis. But in the last several years, Southeast Asia has surpassed the European Union to become China’s largest trading partner on a regional basis.

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