The company is yet to gain an Australian banking licence, for now being classified as an electronic money institution.
Revolut has previously said it is intending to add commission-free investing to its app, the details of its establishment are still to be announced.
For now, it is giving consumers the ability to exchange money to other Revolut customers in the UK and Europe instantly and for free, as well as spend and transfer abroad at the real exchange rate without fees or markups.
Australian consumers will be able to hold and exchange 15 currencies directly in the app, including Australian, New Zealand and US dollars, British pounds and Euros. In the UK and Europe, customers can hold and exchange 29 currencies, a feature that Revolut plans to extend to Australians.
Users can also spend and transfer cryptocurrency, with the app offering bitcoin, litecoin, ether, XRP and BCH.
In Europe, the company now services around 5 million customers. It recently obtained a banking licence from the European Central Bank.
“Historically, sending money to or receiving money from friends and relatives in Europe used to be an expensive and lengthy process,” Revolut said.
“Australians have been financially underserved for far too long.”
Revolut’s local arm is headquartered in Melbourne. It is aiming to have around 30 high-skilled staff by the end of the year.
Sarah Simpkins
Sarah Simpkins is a journalist at Momentum Media, reporting primarily on banking, financial services and wealth.
Prior to joining the team in 2018, Sarah worked in trade media and produced stories for a current affairs program on community radio.
You can contact her on [email protected].
