Revolut is due to start offering Irish customers personal loans and credit cards later this year as it continues to expand its range of services in Ireland.
Revolut has announced that Irish customers can now apply for a personal loan with the bank, marking the fintech's first foray into the lending world.
The news is made possible by the granting of a full banking licence to Revolut by the European Central Bank, which is still pending approval. Revolut is still technically operating in Ireland under an e-money licence until full approval has been granted.
This also means that any deposits (up to €100,000) which customers have with Revolut will be fully backed by the Deposit Guarantee Scheme.
Other lending products such as credit cards will also become available later in 2022.
However, because the full licence is still pending final approval, Revolut can’t officially begin offering loans until the licensing process has been completed.
So, a waiting list for its new personal loan product has been opened, which Irish customers can now apply for within the mobile app.
Here’s how to apply.
Personal loans waiting list
If you’re thinking about taking out a loan with Revolut you can apply to get on the waiting list now through the ‘loans’ tab in the hub section of your Revolut app.
When its European licence finally gets approved in the coming months, Revolut has said that customers will then be able to ‘apply instantly [for loans] without needing to fill out complex forms’.
Furthermore, Revolut said that loan applicants will ‘receive an answer on their loan application within seconds’ through the app.
Former Revolut Ireland CEO, and now Revolut Europe CEO, Joe Heneghan said of the news:
We are delighted to launch Revolut Bank in Ireland, offering Irish consumers more competition and innovation.
With the imminent withdrawal of KBC and Ulster Bank from the market, it is clear that a new bank is needed to compete with legacy banks on price and service.
Customers can now register their interest in a Revolut personal loan, and we look forward to delivering more innovative products this year.
Deposits guaranteed
Revolut receiving a full banking licence also means that its Irish customers will be fully covered by the Lithuanian Deposit Guarantee Scheme.
This means any deposits of up to €100,000 per user with Revolut will be protected - so the same as any other bank operating in Ireland.
For now, customers will continue to have a Lithuanian Iban as Revolut will be operating in Ireland under its Lithuanian banking licence.
Despite being illegal under SEPA, customers can sometimes have problems getting paid or paying bills from their account as the non-Irish Iban is sometimes not recognised. However it’s still possible for Revolut to offer an Irish Iban while operating here under its Lithuanian banking licence and the company says it has plans to offer this.
If and when it does this, another barrier to using Revolut will fall.
Who is eligible to apply?
All existing customers of Revolut are eligible to apply for a loan according to the company and can get on the waiting list today.
Equally so, new users who have signed up in recent days are also eligible to apply and get on the waiting list.
However, customers will not be able to properly apply or draw down any funds until its banking licence has been formally approved.
Revolut confirmed that personal loan pricing will be released later this month, with the first loans being able to be drawn down in a matter of weeks.
However there are no plans for Revolut to offer overdrafts at present.
Compare personal loans on bonkers.ie
Don’t forget you can easily compare personal loan providers and see what your repayments would be on bonkers.ie.
Simply input your loan requirements using our personal loan comparison tool to see all of the loan options available to you.
We also compare a wide range of other products and services including gas and electricity, broadband, current accounts, as well as insurance products.
We also recently launched our very own car insurance comparison service which you can find out more about here.
Get in touch
What do you think of Revolut launching personal loans for Irish banking customers? Would you consider taking out a loan with the fintech? Let us know your opinion in the comments.
If you have any questions about the news feel free to contact us on social media. We’re on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
