Revolut Gets French Banking Licence, Packs Bags for Paris 🏦

Revolut has secured a French banking licence from the ACPR and the European Central Bank, giving the fintech a locally regulated banking foothold in France to complement its existing European licence in Lithuania. The approval allows Revolut to operate as a bank across the European Union and to build out products tailored to French customers, including lending and regulated savings services.

The company has committed $1.1 billion to its French expansion and signed a 10-year lease for its Paris headquarters, which will serve as its Western Europe base. Revolut plans to hire more than 600 employees across Western Europe as part of the push, with 400 of those roles based in France.

Revolut said in a statement that "the licence enables us to operate as a bank across the EU," while declining to comment on its wider regulatory arrangements. The company will migrate customers from France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain onto its French entity.

The licence arrives as Revolut deepens its footprint across the European Union, joining a broader push by digital lenders to lock down regulated banking status in major continental markets.