London-based fintech firm Revolut has been dubbed a disruptor in the banking world and it is “coming to Singapore”, according to its website.
There has been no set date yet, but The Business Times reported that it could launch in October.
It had secured its license to operate in Singapore in late-2018, and has launched beta services early this year.
Today, Revolut announced its partnership with Visa to help expand its business globally.
Specifically, Revolut will be entering 24 new markets by the end of this year, including Singapore, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Russia and the United States.
Following this first wave of expansion, Revolut will be entering Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine and Vietnam next year.
However, the expansion will be subject to necessary regulatory approvals in the respective markets.
As part of the partnership, Revolut will primarily issue Visa-branded cards. It is not exclusive however, so this only applies to about 75 per cent of all Revolut cards.
What Is Revolut?
For those unacquainted with Revolut, it is launched in July 2015 by former Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank investment bankers Nik Storonsky and Vlad Yatsenko as a digital alternative to big banks.
It started off as a service that allowed customers to spend and transfer money overseas at the interbank exchange rate.
It now offers a range of digital banking services on its mobile app, including currency exchange, budgeting and person-to-person (P2P) payments.
The pricing for its subscription plans can be seen on its website, and its free ‘standard’ plan allows you to:
- Spend in over 150 currencies at the interbank exchange rate
- No fee exchange in 8 fiat holding currencies up to S$9,000 per month
- No fee on international ATM withdrawals up to S$350 per month
- Send money domestically and internationally in 27 currencies
Its ‘premium’ and ‘metal’ plan has added perks, and cost S$9.99/month and S$19.99 per month respectively.
With the app, Revolut users can receive instant spending notifications, monthly spending breakdowns, and budgeting based on individual categories.
To Hire 3,500 People By 2020
To support this expansion, Revolut plans to hire an additional 3,500 people. It currently has around 1,500 staff, but wants to bump it up to 5,000 people by next year.
It is already hiring for several positions in Singapore, including a chief executive officer, data analyst, legal head, HR manager, marketing manager, PR & communications lead, among others.
Previously, Revolut has shared plans that it’s keen to work with government bodies to train its workers with skillsets like artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science, as well as user interface design.
As of September 2019, Revolut has claimed over 7 million customers and over £40 billion worth of transactions.
It is valued at US$1.7 billion and plans to raise as much as US$500 million this year from investors.
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