Revolut’s customer growth in Italy has pushed it past six million users, making it the country’s third-largest bank by customer count, behind UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo. Its ambition is to take the top spot, even as the ECB has ordered it to slow new product launches over shortcomings in its approval process.
Key takeaways
- Italy ranks third among Revolut’s European markets.
- Under-35s account for 60% of its Italian customers.
- Revolut’s Italian business customer base has reached 62,000.
- Credit cards and mortgages are priorities for Italy.
According to Corriere della Sera, Revolut had five million Italian customers in May. Nicola Vicino, its general manager in Italy, said the company wants to become the country’s leading bank: “Our ambition goes well beyond: we want to become the first bank in Italy.”
Revolut’s customer growth in Italy extends beyond younger users
Italy is Revolut’s third-largest European market, after France and Germany, and is growing faster than Germany, Vicino said. The Italian customer base remains predominantly young, but older users with more complex financial needs are also increasing.
60% of Italian customers are under 35, with travel, trading and virtual SIMs among their uses of the platform. Vicino described Revolut as a “family bank,” saying it serves different usage profiles.
The expansion also reaches corporate banking. Revolut now serves 62,000 business clients in Italy, an increase of 36%.
UniCredit’s warning and Revolut’s independent strategy
UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel has identified Revolut as one of the most formidable competitors to traditional banks, urging them to accelerate their technological transformation. “If you are not able to beat them, fintechs will end up eating you,” he said.
Vicino welcomed that assessment but acknowledged that an exclusively online offering cannot yet serve the entire Italian market. He nevertheless described the push toward digitalization as very strong.
Revolut does not intend to join Italy’s banking “Risiko.” Vicino said its platform does not integrate with other banks’ systems and described the company as a spectator. He also argued that the activity can distract competitors.
Salary deposits rise as credit cards and mortgages take priority
Revolut is developing credit cards and mortgages for Italian customers, following the introduction of Italian IBANs and F24 tax payments. Vicino called the two planned products strategic priorities.
The expansion faces a regulatory constraint: the ECB has ordered slower product releases after finding weaknesses in the approval process. Vicino said discussions with the regulator are ongoing.
Primary-account use is another point of competition. Orcel argued that digital banks still lack the full service range and customer trust needed to become the main account into which salaries are paid.
Vicino offered figures showing that Revolut’s customer growth in Italy includes greater everyday use: the number of customers receiving salaries directly through the platform has more than doubled in a year. He said many more customers use it for daily payments, while Italian users hold more than €1.2 billion in savings on Revolut.
Postal Police investigate a false customer-data request
Revolut is cooperating with the Postal Police over customer data it supplied following a request falsely presented as coming from the Prefecture of Reggio Calabria. Italian investigators are examining the incident.
Vicino said the investigation is ongoing and that Revolut had not suffered a hacker attack.
Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.