TL;DR

• Revolut posted a £1.7bn pre-tax profit for 2025, with revenues rising 46% to £4.5bn and its customer base reaching 68.3 million worldwide
• The company’s annual report identified shifting public sentiment towards energy-intensive AI and cryptocurrency as a reputational risk to its business
• Revolut now operates as a licensed bank in over 30 markets and has begun rolling out UK current accounts following its long-awaited banking licence approval

Record numbers, new risks

Revolut’s 2025 annual report makes for a study in contrasts. The headline figures are strong: pre-tax profits climbed 57% to £1.7 billion, revenues hit £4.5 billion, and the company added 16 million individual customers during the year. It now serves 13 million people in the UK alone and has applied for a US banking licence as it pushes towards a target of 100 million global customers by mid-2027.

But buried in the risk disclosures is a frank acknowledgement that the company’s association with energy-hungry sectors could become a liability. The report states that changing attitudes towards AI, metals mining, and the carbon footprint of prominent cryptocurrencies “could affect demand for Revolut’s services and present reputational risks.”

Energy costs sharpen the focus

The timing of this disclosure matters. Energy prices have spiked over the past month following the escalation of the US-Israel conflict with Iran, intensifying competition for electricity between AI data centres, crypto mining operations, and ordinary consumers. In the UK, where household energy bills remain a politically sensitive issue, any company seen as profiting from power-intensive activities faces growing scrutiny.

Revolut attempted to soften the warning by arguing that its digital-first model and focus on financial inclusion leave it better positioned than traditional banks to weather an energy transition. That framing echoes a wider pattern among fintechs: claiming environmental resilience through lack of physical branch networks while simultaneously enabling crypto trading and servicing AI-adjacent businesses.

UK banking ambitions in play

The reputational risk question arrives at a sensitive moment for Revolut’s UK operations. After a five-year wait for regulatory approval, the company has finally begun offering current accounts to a small number of British customers, with plans to expand gradually. Chief executive Nik Storonsky, who founded the company in 2015, described 2025 as a “landmark year.”

With a £55 billion valuation from its last fundraising round, Revolut is positioning itself to compete directly with established high street banks on lending, mortgages, and broader financial products. Whether its AI and crypto exposure becomes a genuine obstacle or remains a footnote in annual report risk sections will depend largely on how energy markets and public opinion develop over the coming months. For now, the profits suggest customers are not yet voting with their feet.