Revolut, the UK-based fintech with more than 68 million retail customers, is preparing the ground for a Philippine digital bank. The company is reviewing the regulatory and corporate structures it would need to seek a digital banking license and an electronic money issuer (EMI) license from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the country's central bank. The disclosure follows an October 2 meeting in London between Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Cristina Roque and Adam Gagen, Revolut's global head of government affairs.
What Revolut is planning
Revolut's plan centers on a wholly owned Philippine entity that would hold both licenses. An EMI license covers e-wallet style services, such as storing money and making payments. A digital banking license goes further: it lets a company take deposits and lend, the way GCash's partner banks and players like Maya Bank and GoTyme Bank do today.
The company has not filed an application yet. It says it is still evaluating the structures it needs before approaching the BSP, and the DTI has offered to help coordinate with the regulators involved. Roque told Revolut's executives that the agency wants to "make digital finance work for Filipino businesses, so they can trade, receive payments, and reach global customers with greater ease."
Three digital bank slots are still open
The timing matters. The BSP lifted its three-year moratorium on new digital banks and opened four additional licenses, with applications closing in December 2025. According to Fintech News Philippines, Singapore-backed MariBank claimed the first of those slots in July, becoming the country's seventh licensed digital bank, and three slots remain available.
It is not clear whether Revolut submitted an application before that deadline, and the company does not appear in the BSP's directory of licensed digital banks as of this writing. Until the BSP confirms an application or grants a license, the Philippine launch remains a plan, not a product.
Revolut already employs hundreds in Manila
This is not Revolut's first move in the country. The company opened a global technology hub in Manila in July 2025, where it employs hundreds of people across software engineering, data analytics, customer operations, and financial crime compliance. In February it named Albert Tinio, previously co-CEO of digital lender GoTyme Bank, as its Manila-based CEO-designate.
"Your Global Technology Hub in Manila is a strong vote of confidence in Filipino talent," Roque said during the London meeting.
Revolut's global scale is what makes the move notable. The company serves customers in around 40 markets, counts more than 760,000 business customers on top of its retail base, and was valued at $115 billion (around ₱7.1 trillion) as of July 2026.
What it could mean for GCash, Maya, and GoTyme users
The Philippines already has seven licensed digital banks, and wallet apps dominate daily payments. A fully licensed Revolut would compete directly with GCash, Maya, and GoTyme for deposits, payments, and eventually credit, bringing features it runs abroad, such as multi-currency accounts and low-cost international transfers, into a market where overseas remittances are a daily reality. The BSP has also been tightening the rules around banks that operate digitally, as we covered in BSP Circular 1240's new capital requirements, so any new entrant would be walking into a stricter regime than the first wave of digital banks faced.
For now, nothing changes for Filipino users: Revolut has no live consumer service in the Philippines, no announced launch date, and no confirmed license application. What has changed is the signal. A $115-billion fintech is now openly working through what it would take to bank Filipinos, and the government is offering to smooth the path.
