A charter from the OCC enables nonbank financial services firms to expand their range of products and eliminate the costs of partnering with a sponsor bank to hold the deposits, which could be particularly beneficial as the pandemic has diminished the use of physical branches and digital banking penetration is on the rise.
—but a license won't be a silver bullet. A license could give Revolut users the confidence to increase their deposits and conduct more financial activities through the neobank. To lessen their dependence on interchange fees, neobanks are looking to