Revolut Turns Stablecoins into Working Capital for SMBs with Fee-Free USD Swaps

Revolut Unveils Fee-Free 1:1 Stablecoin-to-USD Swap

Revolut, the global fintech firm with 65 million users, has launched a fee-free 1:1 conversion between U.S. dollars and stablecoins, eliminating spreads and hidden costs for crypto on- and off-ramping. The service, dubbed "1:1 Stablecoins by Revolut," allows users to exchange up to $578,630 every 30 days without losing value, according to a LinkedIn post by the company's head of crypto product, Leonid Bashlykov, in a Cointelegraph report. The offering supports Circle's USDC and Tether's USDT across six blockchains, including Ethereum, Solana, and Tron, and is backed by Revolut's recent Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license from Cyprus regulators.

The move addresses a key pain point for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in countries with volatile fiat currencies. Elbruz Yılmaz, a venture capitalist at Outrun, highlighted that Turkish SMBs often lose 0.8%-1.5% converting local currency to USD, compounded by SWIFT fees and exchange slippage. By removing these frictions, Revolut's 1:1 swaps could transform stablecoins into "working capital infrastructure," enabling faster cycles and reduced foreign exchange bleed, the Cointelegraph article said.

Revolut's strategy aligns with broader trends in stablecoin adoption. JPMorgan analysts noted in a TradingView report that USDC, the stablecoin supported by Revolut, has surged 72% in market capitalization to $74 billion year-to-date, outpacing Tether's USDT, which grew 32% to $307 billion. The analysts attributed USDC's rise to its compliance with MiCA, transparent reserve management, and partnerships with Visa and Mastercard, which facilitate on-chain settlements, according to a BitcoinSistemi report. Meanwhile, USDT maintains dominance in emerging markets but faces headwinds in Europe due to MiCA-related delistings, the TradingView piece added.

Revolut's 1:1 swap builds on its expanding crypto ecosystem. The company reported $1.1 billion in net earnings for 2024, driven by a 298% revenue surge in its wealth division, according to a Yahoo Finance report. Its Revolut X trading platform, launched in May 2024, now serves 30 European countries, while March 2024's Revolut Ramp partnership with MetaMask developer Consensys enables direct crypto purchases in Web3 wallets, the Yahoo Finance piece noted.

The fintech's innovation comes as global financial institutions increasingly integrate stablecoins. Western Union plans to launch its USDPT stablecoin on Solana by 2026, while SWIFT tests on-chain messaging systems, according to a CryptoTimes report. Regulators worldwide, including in Japan and Korea, are also advancing national digital currencies and stablecoin frameworks, the CryptoTimes article added.