Revolut criticised by Oireachtas Commitee for crypto offering and GDPR compliance 

Revolut said the average Irish crypto account held just under €450

Revolut has grown to over 3m Irish customers, with more than 80% of its customer base using their account for free through the bank's standard plan

Digital bank Revolut came under fire from Oireachtas members on Wednesday, with senior management at the Irish arm of the global fintech questioned about cryptocurrency, customer service and GDPR compliance. 

Country Manager of Revolut's Irish branch, Malcolm Craig and Group Head of Financial Crime Compliance, Eamon Howard met with the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach to discuss regulatory oversight of neo-banks amid their increased presence in the Irish market. 

Revolut has grown to over 3m Irish customers, with more than 80% of its customer base using their account for free through the bank's standard plan. The fintech has also significantly expanded its product offerings, with cryptocurrency, personal loans, equity investments, currency exchange and deposit accounts currently available, with plans by the fintech to also expand into the Irish mortgage market.

Speaking on these plans, Mr Craig said Revolut had already launched mortgage products in its home of Lithuania, with a team also in Dublin working on Revolut's "local mortgage product."

"We will release it when we are fully ready and spot on for the Irish market," Mr Craig said. 

Revolut Ireland Country Manager Malcom Craig.

The Revolut Country Manager was responding to questions from Social Democrats TD Cian O'Callaghan, who raised concerns about the fintech's cryptocurrency offering.

Mr Craig said cryptocurrency was "not a key product" for the company, and made up just 7% of Revolut's global revenue. It also said the average value of a cryptocurrency account in Ireland was just €446, with just under 10% of 18-year-olds availing of the fintech's crypto offerings when they switch to an adult account.

"We take a responsible approach when it comes to crypto," Mr Craig told the Joint Committee.

"It is not available for users under 18, and when someone does decide to buy crypto, we make it clear what the person is purchasing."

GDPR compliance

Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty took aim at Revolut for "refusing" to give users "a legal right" to their personal information. Mr Doherty said he had a personal dispute with Revolut after his account was restricted without warning, telling the bank's senior management: "I want my data."

"You make it extremely difficult to access this, indeed, I would argue, illegal, for what you are doing that actually put barriers in place for people to access their data."

Mr Doherty told the Joint Committee that he requested a GDPR/data request email address from Revolut at least eight times, which he said was refused until he threatened to go to the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman.

"Over and over again, Revolut has refused to give me what is a legal right," Mr Doherty said.

Mr Craig said Revolut remained compliant with all GDPR regulations, and that the right for a person to access their data remained "undisputed."

Mr Doherty also took aim at Revolut's customer service, calling it "appalling" and warning that anyone with a significant amount of money in their Revolut account "is taking a risk."

"If you run into a problem with Revolut, you are in serious difficulty," Mr Doherty added.

Mr Craig said customer satisfaction at Revolut was high, as seen from surveys and from the "multiple awards," the fintech has received in Ireland.

"We consider our customer service to be good and we will continue to work on it to make it better."