Revolut unlocks interest for its standard users

It’s a well-known fact that interest rates are the lowest they’ve been in a long time, with most high street banks offering just 0.01 per cent (and threatening to introduce negative rates), giving fintechs a unique opportunity to lure in new customers.

Digital banking service Revolut today announced it’s introducing interest rates on savings vaults for its non-fee paying customers.

The fintech is offering 0.15 per cent interest on cash up to £85,000, a hair higher than its closest competitors Monzo and Starling which offer rates of 0.10 per cent (on Monzo’s easy access pot) and 0.05 per cent (on Starling’s current account) respectively.

“To date, Vaults have helped over 2.5 million people build towards their financial goals. Now, we are excited to roll out Savings Vaults with daily interest and no fees to standard plan users to help them achieve their goals faster,” Marsel Nikaj, head of savings and lifestyle at Revolut said. 

“We are also looking forward to bringing this product to European markets in the near future to enable anyone to earn money on their savings, even in a negative interest rate environment.”

Up until now, only Revolut’s paying customers could earn interest on their savings, with the fintech offering up to 0.40 per cent on GBP savings and up to 0.65 per cent on USD.

Revolut has long suggested that it might get into the wealth management sector and this latest release shows its interest in remaining competitive in the savings space at least. 

In June this year, the fintech’s chairman Martin Gilbert first alluded toRevolut dipping its toes into wealth management.

Earlier this month, Revolut also became the UK’s most valuable fintech after it closed an $800m Series E, seeing its valuation skyrocket to $33bn.

Revolut will use the fresh capital to strengthen its presence in the US, where it has just applied for a banking licence, and India, where it has recently put down roots.