Lithuania Fines Revolut €3.5M Over Money Laundering Lapses

Lithuania’s central bank has fined British fintech giant Revolut €3.5 million ($3.83 million) for failing to meet anti-money laundering (AML) standards, the largest penalty ever issued by the regulator.

Revolut, which operates in the European Union under a Lithuanian banking license, came under scrutiny following a routine inspection that uncovered weaknesses in the monitoring of customer activity and transactions. According to a statement released on Monday, these shortcomings led to the company failing to detect or investigate suspicious transactions.

The central bank did not detail specific cases but said the violations related to Revolut’s handling of business relationships and operations.

A Revolut spokesperson said the findings pointed to areas for improvement rather than actual money laundering incidents. “The investigation identified no confirmed instances of money laundering. Revolut Bank is committed to the highest standards of regulatory compliance,” the company said, noting that it cooperated with authorities and taken corrective actions.

Revolut signed a settlement agreement with the Lithuanian central bank and has since implemented measures to address the identified deficiencies. The fine was calculated based on the seriousness of the violations and the revenue of Revolut Holdings Europe, the regulator said.

Despite the penalty, Revolut remains one of Europe’s most valuable financial technology companies. Investors in the fintech giant were reportedly pushing for a secondary share sale at a $60 billion valuation, a sharp increase from the $45 billion valuation in a similar sale just six months ago.

Founded in 2015 by Nikolay Storonsky and Vlad Yatsenko as a financial travel app, Revolut has since expanded into business banking, insurance, savings, and stock trading. The latest push for a higher valuation comes as existing shareholders are interested in offloading some of their shares.

Revolut also prepares for a potential public listing, which is more likely to take place in New York rather than London. However, Bloomberg reported that an IPO is unlikely before 2026, with company leadership leaning towards a U.S. listing.

Additionally, Revolut obtained a UK trading license from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), allowing it to trade UK and European stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The move broadens the London-based fintech company’s services, which previously focused on U.S.-listed shares available through its app since 2019.

Revolut seeks to expand its offerings for its 650,000 UK trading customers. The company plans to update its app to support the new services and compete with established names in the UK trading market, including Hargreaves Lansdown, AJ Bell, Trading 212, and Freetrade.