Revolut fundraising round could value company at $10bn
UK fintech startup Revolut is gearing up for a new round of fundraising that could push it to a more than $10bn (£7.2bn) valuation.
The neobank is being advised by US-based investment bank FT Partners on a new equity raise, that could occur in the summer of this year, Sky News reported.
Revolut has no imminent need for capital, with the next raise potentially involving the sale of $250m worth of new shares, the broadcaster said citing sources.
The financial technology firm, which raised $500m in a funding round at a valuation of $5.5bn in early 2020, operates in over 35 countries.
Despite the path to new pastures comes, the coronavirus pandemic presented many bumps in the road for the digital bank.
In August last year, figures showed Revolut tripled its losses to £106.5m ($147m) despite an increase in its customer base from 3.5 million to 10 million during the first lockdown, while revenues rose 180% to £162.7m. It broke even for the first time in just under two years, in November.
Last month, the company announced it had completed the first steps to apply for a US banking license.
It made a similar application in January, for a UK bank licence to the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Revolut said that the licenses will allow it to provide a broader range of financial products to its customers including overdraft protection, loans and deposit accounts.
Founded in London in 2015, Revolut began life as a cheap foreign exchange card linked to an app but has expanded into everything from stock trading to savings and even cryptocurrencies.
A company spokesperson declined to comment on Saturday.
READ MORE: Strong start to year for UK fintech as startups raise $2.9bn
Financial technology and cyber firms, including Monzo, Revolut and OakNorth, contribute billions of pounds to the UK economy every year.
According to new figures from Innovate Finance, the industry body representing UK fintech, the sector raised a record total of $2.9bn in the first three months of 2021.
A total of 117 deals were struck across the sector, with investment levels up 153% compared the previous quarter — up 331% on the same period in 2020, when Britain was in the first full month of lockdown.
The investment this year so far, which includes six mega deals worth more than $100m each, represents 69% of total investment in 2020. This almost matched the total of seven reached last year.
Separate research by accounting firm EY, showed the industry, which has hubs in London, Leeds, Manchester, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast and elsewhere, contributed around £11bn ($15.3bn) to the UK economy in 2019.
Britain has a 10% share of the global fintech market. In 2020, investment into UK fintech stood at $4.1bn, more than the next four European countries combined, the Treasury said.
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