In what may be a sign of optimism and better times ahead, the British challenger bank Revolut is going live in the United States on Tuesday. It joins European peers N26, the German challenger bank that went live in this country this past summer, and Monzo, a Brit rival that has been ramping up operations in the U.S.
Revolut is based in London and has 10 million customers in Europe. It offers what it calls a “Financial Super App,” a single app where consumers can manage all aspects of their financial lives.
So far, its main offerings look like those of other challenger banks: a mobile app, a deposit account (the funds are held at partner Metropolitan Commercial Bank in New York), a debit card, quick account opening, budgeting tools and spending analytics, immediate access to paycheck funds and low fees.
It also offers some payment features not all the rest have: Users can buy and sell 28 currencies and send and receive money internationally at the interbank exchange rate. Revolut customers can send and request money to each other for free, split a bill and round up every card purchase to the nearest dollar and stash away their spare change. They can freeze and unfreeze their card and turn payment features off and on from within the app. Revolut also offers a disposable virtual card, whereby virtual card details are refreshed each time a transaction is made online.
The company says it intends to roll out additional features and services in the near future, including cryptocurrencies, commission-free stock trading and savings products.
In four years, Revolut has raised more than $800 million in funding. Last month, it raised $500 million in Series D funding at a valuation of $5.5 billion. Revolut backers include Ribbit Capital, Index Ventures, DST Global and TCV.
