Revolut challenges big British banks with personal loans

Revolut, the UK-based fintech company, has entered the British market in one of the most profitable and rapidly growing sectors for traditional banks: personal loans. The company, founded in 2015, has expanded its product range to offer unsecured personal loans (UPL) ranging from £2,000 to £25,000 (approximately €2,390 to €29,840) with interest rates between 6.9% and 29.3% APR, depending on individual factors and loan amount.

The loan terms are between 1 and 5 years, with no penalties for early repayment. Customers can pre-qualify for a loan without affecting their credit score, and a more comprehensive credit check will be conducted if the loan is eventually applied for. This initial pilot phase aims to analyze performance and address any potential issues with a small group of customers before expanding the offering to its 14 million UK customers.

Francesca Carlesi, Revolut's UK country manager, emphasized that the company aims to provide a transparent, straightforward, and fast loan process with no early repayment fees and competitive interest rates. Revolut has previously offered personal loans in Spain, Portugal, Poland, Romania, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Germany, and France, in addition to Australia.

The UK is a crucial market for Revolut due to its large customer base and recent acquisition of full banking license, achieved in March. This personal loan launch marks another step in Revolut's goal of becoming a full-service bank, rather than just a daily payments application.