The financial industry which is known for being slow at jumping on trending technologies, has surprised everyone in recent times with the way they’ve embraced emerging technologies like blockchain and cryptocurrency, and interestingly the industry is doing well with these integrations, as we have seen in the emergence of startup fintechs in different parts of the world.
Revolut Digital Bank
According to a report by Financial Times, a digital bank called Revolut, which is based in the United Kingdom, had a funding round where $500 million was raised, and that sent the valuation of the startup to $5.5 billion, and that helped boost the reputation of the fintech firm to become one of the most valuable in the United Kingdom.
A look into the Revolut application shows that the app has been of great help to users looking to transact with cryptocurrencies such as ETH, LTC, BTC, and XRP. By allowing crypto transactions, users are able to enjoy seamless crypto-related services. Lithuania issued a banking license to the fintech firm in 2018, and that created an avenue for the firm to expand from just prepaid cards to giving users more value with a wide range of banking services. It may interest you to know that Revolut’s user base is numbering over 10 million users, and 2019 saw the growth of the users getting multiplied by about 150%. In addition to the stocks and crypto trading services that the firm offers, they are also looking to also delve into offering lending services soon, as well as obtain a U.K. banking license.
Possibly Offering U.S Support
The market for fintech firms has been looking lucrative in the U.K., and the growth has been impressive. For instance, according to a report from Accenture, the users rose to 19.6 million from 7.7 million in 2019. In a recent report by Cointelegraph, there are indications that Revolut is looking to expand its services, and spread its tentacles to the United States. Launching in the U.S. will be possible after the fintech firm has satisfactorily met the requirements needed to operate, including regulatory requirements. Furthermore, the fintech firm is hoping to spread out into the Asian and Latin American markets.
FinTech Growth
Several hybrid fintech firms have popped up, and it is interesting to see that they offer both crypto transactions and traditional banking services. Starling’s co-founder, Mark Hipperson has announced that plans are underway to launch Ziglu, a new venture for banking, in the first quarter of 2020, and this new venture will help users transact in multiple currencies including cryptocurrency and fiat currency, all from one bank account. Users will be able to make global transactions with the aid of their debit cards (Mastercard).
U.K. is making good use of the emerging technologies trend, and that is a huge plus in the push to make cryptocurrency a mainstream mode of payment just like fiat currency.