Revolut has secured conditional approval to operate as a fully fledged bank in the US, a milestone for Europe’s most valuable fintech as it seeks to expand into the lucrative American market. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) granted Revolut preliminary approval for a national US bank charter on Wednesday, according to public filings. The charter, once fully authorised, would allow the London-based group to provide insured deposits to US customers and mean it would no longer need to deal with regulated partner banks to offer banking services.

Co-founder and chief executive Nik Storonsky said the approval “is an important first step” that gives Revolut the “foundation to build in the world’s largest financial market and bring the full Revolut experience to millions of Americans.” Revolut has long held ambitions to make inroads into the US market but was held back by delays over approvals for its full UK banking licence, which was granted in March after a multiyear process with regulators at the Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). The London-based fintech only applied for the US licence in March. It is still waiting for regulatory approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Federal Reserve, in addition to full approval from the OCC.

Revolut US chief executive Cetin Duransoy told the FT that the bank expects to launch in the US during the first half of 2027. It plans to initially target expats with “multi-currency banking” as its anchor product. In the US, Revolut plans to launch checking, savings, credit products, instalment loans and credit cards.

It also plans to add stablecoins and business banking over time. However, mortgages were not part of the three-year plan it submitted to regulators, so the company plans to add such loans later once it has tested them in other markets. Founded in the UK capital in 2015, Revolut’s valuation has soared as it rapidly expanded internationally, amassing 80mn customers globally.

The group was recently valued at $115bn in a private share sale.