Tell me Revolut is in trouble without telling me Revolut is in trouble 😨; Splitit + Visa is a match made in heaven 😇; First consumer product from the world’s most powerful CEO 👁
FinTech is Eating the World, 10 May
Hey Everyone,
Happy Thursday! Today’s issue is undoubtedly the best and spiciest one yet. We’re going to look at Revolut’s troubles which are starting to look like a pile of 💩 (+ a bonus dive into their financials), Splitit partnering with Visa (it’s a match made in heaven + why BNPL is dead (?)), and first consumer product from the world’s most powerful CEO (Minority Report, here we come!). Let’s jump straight into the spicy stuff 🌶
Tell me Revolut is in trouble without telling me Revolut is in trouble 😨
The BREAKING news🔥 British FinTech giant Revolut has lost another senior executive. This time, group CFO Mikko Salovaara is leaving the FinTech heavyweight for "personal reasons". Sure he is!
Just yesterday I wrote about Revolut fighting its own banking crisis, and now we have this. Wow 😮
ICYMI: Revolut is fighting its own banking crisis 😳
More on this 👉 Salovaara leaves Revolut as the neobank’s 2-year quest to secure a UK banking license appears in trouble. The Financial Times reported that the process has "nearly halted" 👀
One must remember that at the beginning of March, Salovaara - who joined Revolut in 2021 - had signaled that the unusually-long process to secure a license was coming to a close, promising that it would arrive "any day now".
In a resignation statement, he now said:
I am grateful for the opportunity to serve as Group CFO at Revolut and remain confident in the firm’s future success.
Of course, you are 🙃
Zoom out 🔎 In business, the resignation of your Chief Financial Officer usually makes one question whether there are any financial issues that the company is facing. It can also cause concerns among investors, lenders, and other stakeholders who may view the departure of a CFO as a red flag for the company's financial health.
What does it tell you if this becomes a trend? Probably a lot…
2023 May 11: group CFO Mikko Salovaara is leaving Revolut for “personal reasons”.
2020 March 16: David Maclean is stepping down after less than 6 months at the company. Maclean, who was previously a finance director at Metro Bank, has cited personal reasons as the reason for his sudden exit.
2019 January: Peter O’Higgins, the chief financial officer of unicorn FinTech start-up Revolut, resigned as questions were raised over the firm’s ability to screen suspicious transactions.
✈️ THE TAKEAWAY
It’s bad out there 😬 One CFO resigning might be an outlier and an unfortunate event. Because things happen, views might not align, or some bigger opportunities might come across. But losing your CFOs consistently is already a trend that’s deeply worrying. Not only because it might mean that Revolut is not going to get a UK banking license altogether. But more importantly, it might signal that they could be having some serious issues with their financial health.
Worth revisiting: Revolut revenue drama 🎭
