British online bank Revolut on Friday posted slumping 2022 profit on surging costs and credit losses, in a long-delayed results statement as it targets growth and awaits approval for a UK banking licence.
Net profit nosedived almost 80 percent to £5.8 million in 2022, but this was skewed by a particularly strong 2021 performance, Revolut said in a results statement.
Revenue, however, soared nearly 50 percent to a record £923 million, lifted by rising interest rates and booming customer numbers.
The earnings had been delayed by almost one year, partly due to auditor concerns over revenue data — and the introduction of a new accounting system.
“In spite of the challenging macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape, 2022 was an excellent year for Revolut,” said chair Martin Gilbert.
Revolut more than doubled its workforce in 2022 to 5,913 people, while retail customers leapt 60 percent to 26.2 million.
“We see a large opportunity for us to grow,” particularly in western Europe, chief financial officer Victor Stinga told AFP in an interview.
He added that the group’s new accounting system “lays the fundation to return to a regular reporting schedule next year”.
“We will generate significant profit in 2023,” Stinga predicted.
The performance was hampered in 2022 by worsening credit losses, which quintupled to £5.2 million during the year.
Stinga insisted this reflected a tenfold increase in the lender’s loan portfolio, rather than a deterioration in home market Britain — where a cost-of-living crisis has stretched the finances of many Britons.
Revolut already holds a banking licence in the European Union, but is still seeking a licence in Britain.
The Daily Telegraph had reported in May that the Bank of England was preparing to reject Revolut’s bid for a licence citing balance sheet issues.
Such a licence would allow it to lend money as well as take deposits in the UK — and is seen also as a gateway to gaining bank licences elsewhere in the world.
