R1.3 trillion banking giant setting up shop in South Africa

UK-based banking giant Revolut is quietly building out its operations in South Africa as it applies for a full banking licence in the country. 

This will be the $75 billion company’s first foray into Africa as it rapidly expands its presence around the world and scales its operations. 

In its annual report for the 2025 financial year, the bank revealed for the first time that it has incorporated Revolut Holdings South Africa as a company. 

This company shares office space in the Atrium on 5th in Sandton with Revolut OpCo South Africa. These companies were incorporated on 7 July and 8 July 2025, respectively. 

The revelation follows the bank’s notice in November last year that it has officially submitted its Section 12 application with the Reserve Bank’s Prudential Authority. 

This first step to becoming a fully licensed bank in South Africa was coupled with the announcement that former African Bank CEO Dr Gaby Magomola will be chairman of Revolut South Africa. 

The bank’s expansion to South Africa was first announced on 23 September 2025 at the launch of its new global headquarters in London.

Revolut is significantly expanding its global footprint, with its mission to become a top-three financial app in every market it operates in and enter 30 new markets by 2030. 

Now operational across Europe, the UK, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, and the US, Revolut is making significant progress on licensing in key regions.

In Latin America, the company expects to launch as a bank in Mexico early next year and is also moving forward with plans to enter Colombia and Argentina.

Often termed a ‘neobank’, Revolut offers free and subscription-based digital banking services through its mobile app. 

Features include domestic and international bank transfers, debit and credit cards, stock and crypto trading, as well as traditional savings accounts and loans.

Sanlam CEO Paul Hanratty, which has a close relationship with GoTyme Bank, has said that Revolut’s launch in South Africa will reshape banking in the country. 

“When Revolut arrives on the shores of South Africa, it is going to be a seismic event for retail banking in South Africa,” News24 reported Hanratty as saying. 

“The main reason is that the cost base is different in a digital bank compared with a legacy bricks-and-mortar bank. It changes the competitive dynamics completely.” 

South Africa already has some of its own successful digital banks, including GoTyme Bank, which has disrupted the highly competitive sector. 

Discovery Bank is perhaps the best example, with its digital offering being full-service and rapidly scaling to over 1.5 million clients and profitability since launching in 2018. 

South Africa’s Big Four banks – Absa, Standard Bank, Nedbank, and FirstRand (FNB) – still remain dominant, holding over 80% of all deposits in the country. 

These banks are also not just sitting by and letting themselves be disrupted, with many overhauling their personal and private banking offerings while leveraging their substantial scale. 

Revolut’s finances

Revolut continued to show immense growth in the 2025 financial year, with the company marking its fifth consecutive year of profitability. 

“2025 marked another record year for Revolut, underpinned by rapid global expansion, strong financial performance, and sustained innovation across the business,” CEO Nik Storonsky said. 

“We accelerated product adoption and delivered our fifth consecutive year of profitability, reinforcing our position as Europe’s most valuable private technology company and welcoming new investors through a secondary share sale at an implied valuation of $75 billion.” 

Revolut posted its strongest set of financial results on record, with its revenue surging by 46% to $6 billion on the back of growth within its business banking unit. 

The bank’s retail customers rose by 30% to 68.3 million individuals, with retail transaction volume jumping 67% to over $1 trillion. This translated into a record profit of $1.7 billion. 

One of the key trends flagged by Storonsky is the increase in customers choosing Revolut as their primary bank, indicating that it is successfully displacing established financial institutions. 

Storonsky attributed this to the bank steadily expanding its offering, which results in clients being locked into its ecosystem. 

The bank has successfully diversified its income streams by offering new products and increasing customer engagement on its platform.

This generates highly lucrative earnings from non-interest revenue, which is not sensitive to interest rates and is highly profitable as it does not consume capital to the same extent as traditional banking activities, such as lending. 

The majority of Revolut’s revenue comes from card payments and not interest income, indicating that the bank’s earnings are extremely high-quality and cash-generative. 

When its subscription revenue is included, the vast majority of the bank’s revenue comes from non-lending activities, which is rare and highly profitable. 

Revolut is also increasingly generating revenue from its forex and wealth services, further reducing reliance on interest income. 

“Revolut is entering its next phase of expansion. Our customer base continues to grow at a remarkable pace, now exceeding 70 million customers, supported by a resilient business model that delivers strong financial results,” Storonsky said. 

“Even at our current scale, we believe we are only at the beginning of our mission to make managing money effortless — with a long-term goal of reaching 100 million daily active customers in 100 countries.” 

In early 2026, Revolut launched full banking operations in Mexico, providing a blueprint for our expansion into high-growth markets.

In March 2026, it officially filed for a US national bank charter, which will move us from being a guest in the US banking system to a permanent resident, enabling it to offer full-scale lending, credit cards, and direct FDIC insurance to millions more Americans.