Revolut has reported its most profitable year on record, with pre-tax profits rising 57% to £1.7 billion in 2025, but the company has tempered the good news with a frank warning about the environmental and reputational risks linked to its involvement in cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence. The admission, made in the company’s annual report, reflects rising pressure on financial institutions to account for the ecological footprint of the technologies they support. Revolut’s candor on the issue sets it apart from many fintech peers that have been slower to address ESG concerns publicly.
The company, which was founded in 2015 and is led by chief executive Nik Storonsky, has spent the past decade building a global digital banking platform that now serves 68.3 million customers across 40 markets. Following the award of its UK banking licence after five years of regulatory review, Revolut is now transitioning into a full-service bank, rolling out current accounts to UK customers. The firm is also pursuing a US banking licence as part of its international expansion strategy.
Revolut’s 2025 numbers were strong across the board. Revenues increased 46% to £4.5 billion, while the company added 16 million new individual users during the year. Business customer numbers rose by approximately one-third to 767,000, and the platform now serves one in five working-age adults across Europe. The company is aiming to reach the 100 million customer milestone by mid-next year.
The energy concerns at the heart of Revolut’s risk disclosure are substantial. Bitcoin mining requires extraordinary levels of electrical energy, while AI data centres are rapidly becoming some of the largest power consumers in the world. With global energy prices rising due to geopolitical tensions, the commercial and reputational stakes around energy-intensive digital services have never been higher. Companies that fail to address these concerns risk alienating environmentally conscious customers, investors, and regulators.
Revolut’s next chapter will likely be defined by its expansion into lending and mortgage products, following an initial launch of mortgage refinancing services in Lithuania last May. The US banking licence application, filed this month, signals the company’s intent to establish a meaningful presence in the world’s largest financial market. Storonsky described the past year as a “landmark” and said the company’s journey is far from over.