UK fintech Revolut has submitted licence applications to the Central Bank of the UAE in a bid to expand its offerings in the Middle East.
The digital bank is seeking an electronic money institution (EMI) licence in the UAE to offer its remittance services. This is the first step in Revolut eventually applying for a banking licence in the Middle Eastern country.
The company opened an office in the UAE at the Dubai International Financial Centre in 2022, currently employing 140 staff. A majority of these employees in Dubai were relocated from Ukraine due to the Russian invasion.
Now pursuing an EMI licence that will enable Revolut to offer its money transfer services that can be sent across the world, the fintech is also looking to bolster its employee headcount in the UAE.
Several positions at the UAE branch, such as Head of Finance, will be available to interested individuals. Revolut is also reportedly looking to fill roles within its compliance, crypto, engineering and product areas, as well as a new Head of Legal.
Emirati city Dubai has become somewhat of a second home for many Brits. According to research by John Mason, there are currently more than 240,000 British nationals living in the UAE, with over 5,000 companies also operating in the country.
With Revolut intending to begin its remittance operations in cities such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi, this provides British residents of the cities a chance to send money back home to the UK with Revolut.
The UAE would become one of many markets Revolut is active in and would complement the vision of its CEO, Nik Storonsky, of the company becoming a true global bank.
Currently, Revolut is active in the UK, Brazil, Australia, Singapore, the US and more. The company has more than 45 million global users and the UAE would help garner more customers if it were to be successful with its licence applications.
But the UAE may not be the only Middle Eastern country that Revolut is interested in. Storonsky has also mentioned his desire to enter Saudi Arabia and create an entity within the growing fintech market.
