Revolut’s Big Move

The rise of so-called “challenger banks” in the U.K. and Europe in recent years has revolutionized financial services in those areas. They’ve managed to attract millions of customers and have forced traditional banks to embrace digital innovation in new ways.

In the U.S., the purely digital, start-up challenger bank has not had such a large impact. And even the ones that had started to gain some headway (or at least media coverage) are not being used as alternatives to traditional bank accounts, but usually as complements to them.

But that hasn’t stopped some of Europe’s challenger bank heavyweights from trying to conquer the massive opportunity the U.S. market represents. German start-up bank N26 this year launched its service in the U.S. And the U.K.’s Revolut — which started with a no-fee prepaid debit card but has expanded to offer features including currency transfers and crypto trading — has engaged JPmorgan Chase to help raise $1.5 billion, according to a report. This comes at a time when Revolut is seeking a U.S. banking license, reports say. 

We’ll see if Revolut can make a splash in the U.S. where others have failed.