SINGAPORE: Global fintech firm Revolut reported a record profit of US$ 545 million ( S$ 739 million ), with revenue almost doubling to US$ 2.2 billion in 2023, the company announced on Tuesday ( Jul 2 ).
Net income for last year soared to US$ 428 million, a hefty 6, 000 per cent increase from the US$ 7 million it made in 2022.  ,
Revolut operates a mega- money e- budget for bills and payments. Users may even trade stocks, swap- traded money, commodities and crypto.
Victor Stinga, the company’s chief financial officer, told CNA in an interview on Monday that the company’s top three drivers of profits were sturdy product performance, strong consumer growth, and improved interest earnings.
In terms of revenue, gross margin – the percentage of a bank’s income that remains after strong expenses are subtracted – increased from 70 per cent to 76 per share.
” We usually exercise what we call a zero- base budget beliefs, so we need to support every one expense”, said Mr Stinga.
Excluding the cost of advertising and marketing, bills increased simply by 29 per cent last season– compared with a 95 per cent increase in revenue, he said.  ,
We think that the efficiency of this business can grow quickly without reducing your cost base is what we mean, he continued.
The boost in travel after the COVID- 19 pandemic increased demand for Revolut’s services in Singapore, said Mr Matt Baxby, the company’s Asia- Pacific CEO.
” Following the pandemic, 2023 saw a strong rebound in travel worldwide. Revolut’s cross- border transaction data shows that Singaporeans not only travelled frequently in 2023, but also to many different destinations”, he said.
According to the International Air Transport Association, air traffic last year reached 94.1 per cent of pre- pandemic levels.
Last year, another multi- currency e- wallet operator, YouTrip, said travel propelled its growth after the pandemic.
GROWING NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS
Revolut had 45 million customers globally as of June, the company announced. Of these, 7 million started using its products this year.
For the full year of 2023, Revolut added 12 million customers.
In a press release, the company stated that it is on track to reach 50 million customers by the year’s end.
From 2022 onward, there will be a rise in monthly active users, with a nearly 77 % increase in the number of Revolut customers in Singapore.  ,
More than half of Singapore’s users are between the ages of 18 and 34. The biggest growth in users is among 18- to 24- year- olds.
Revolut said it has “more than hundreds of thousands of users” in Singapore, but it would not disclose the exact number of customers it had.
YouTrip claimed to have more than a million users in Singapore and that it saw a 68 % increase in users between 2023 and 2024.
Wise, another multi- currency e- wallet operator, said its local customer base grew 30 per cent year- on- year.