Revolut received conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to form a national bank, the company announced on September 3. The UK-based fintech firm, which serves more than 80 million customers worldwide, said the approval marks a major step toward launching its proposed U.S. bank.
The OCC granted the conditional approval as part of a broader push to bring new entrants into the U.S. banking system. Since 2025, the regulator has received 40 de novo charter applications and approved 21 of those, denying two. Revolut joins Coinbase, Paxos, BitGo, Ripple, and Circle as crypto and fintech firms that have received conditional OCC approvals.
What comes next
Conditional approval is not a license to operate. Revolut must still secure approvals from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Federal Reserve, along with final OCC approval, before it can begin offering banking products directly to U.S. customers. The company said it remains on track for a planned 2027 launch.
Revolut CEO Nik Storonsky called the conditional approval “an important first step.” He said it “gives us the foundation to build in the world’s largest financial market and bring the full Revolut experience to millions of Americans.” U.S. CEO Cetin Duransoy added that the OCC’s “open and transparent dialogue throughout this process” allowed the company to stay on track.
Once all approvals are received, Revolut will be able to directly offer U.S. customers loans, credit cards, savings accounts, and stablecoin services. The company currently operates in the U.S. through partner banks, which limits the products it can offer and the fees it can collect. A national bank charter would remove those restrictions and give Revolut direct control over its deposit base, lending operations, and payment infrastructure.
The fintech-to-bank pipeline
Revolut’s charter application is part of a broader trend. A growing number of crypto and technology firms have sought bank charters in the U.S. since the OCC under Acting Comptroller Michael Hsu took a more welcoming stance toward non-traditional applicants.
Coinbase received conditional approval for a national trust charter in April 2026. Paxos, BitGo, and Circle received similar approvals in 2025 and 2026. Ripple secured its charter through the acquisition of Standard Custody and Trust Company. The OCC has processed these applications faster than traditional bank charter requests, with average review times dropping from 18 months to under 9 months for crypto-related applicants.
The pipeline matters because bank charters give fintech firms direct access to the Federal Reserve’s payment systems, FDIC insurance, and the ability to hold customer deposits without relying on partner banks. For Revolut, which already operates banking subsidiaries in the UK, Lithuania, and Mexico, the U.S. charter would complete its push toward what Storonsky has described as “the world’s first truly global bank.”
Stablecoin ambitions
The bank charter also positions Revolut to expand its stablecoin business. The company launched its MiCA-regulated euro stablecoin, EURR, on Ethereum in late August. The stablecoin is part of a broader strategy to integrate digital assets into its banking infrastructure, alongside its existing crypto trading and custody services.
Revolut has been building stablecoin infrastructure for several years. The company has been exploring dollar-denominated stablecoins for cross-border payments and settlement. A U.S. bank charter would give Revolut the regulatory framework to issue or distribute stablecoins directly, without relying on third-party issuers like Tether or Circle.
The regulatory landscape for stablecoins has shifted in 2026. The GENIUS Act, which sets federal requirements for stablecoin issuers, took full effect in July. The European Union’s MiCA regulation entered full enforcement, imposing stricter reserve requirements and disclosure rules. In the UK, the FCA’s proposed framework would require authorization for any firm issuing or holding stablecoins in the British payment system. The BIS crypto framework, effective January 1, 2026, requires banks to disclose crypto exposures and favors regulated stablecoins over unregulated alternatives.
The bigger picture
Revolut’s OCC approval comes at a time when the boundaries between fintech, crypto, and banking are blurring. Traditional banks are launching crypto custody services. Crypto exchanges are applying for bank charters. Fintech firms are building stablecoin infrastructure. The OCC’s willingness to approve non-traditional applicants reflects a regulatory environment that is increasingly comfortable with the convergence.
The risk is that speed comes at the expense of safety. The OCC approved 21 out of 40 applications since 2025, but the regulator has also withdrawn conditional approvals in the past when applicants failed to meet milestones. Silvergate Bank and Signature Bank, both crypto-friendly institutions, collapsed in 2023, leading to tighter scrutiny of firms with heavy crypto exposure.
Revolut’s position is different from those failed banks. The company’s core business is payments and consumer banking, not crypto lending or trading. Its stablecoin activities are a small fraction of its total revenue. But the convergence trend means that even well-capitalized fintech firms face questions about how they will manage risk across traditional and digital asset products.
The U.S. bank charter, if finalized, would make Revolut one of the few non-U.S. fintech firms to hold a full national bank license. The company already operates in more than 200 markets and processes billions in annual transaction volume. Adding direct U.S. banking capabilities would give it access to the world’s largest pool of consumer deposits, which total more than $17 trillion across U.S. commercial banks.
For the broader market, Revolut’s approval signals that the OCC is willing to extend bank charters to firms whose business models include digital assets alongside traditional banking products. That precedent could attract more applicants in 2027, including other international fintechs looking to establish a regulated U.S. presence.
discussion