Revolut Negotiates Acquisition of Turkish Digital Bank: Why Regulatory Licenses Have Become the Key Bargaining Chip

2026-01-07 15:30:11

【Chain Wen】Fintech player Revolut is in acquisition talks with Turkey’s digital bank FUPS, aiming to establish a foothold in the Turkish market through this deal. However, nothing has been finalized yet, and both parties are still in negotiations. The deal must also pass the scrutiny of Turkey’s banking regulator, BDDK.

FUPS is no small player — it holds Turkey’s 2022-issued digital banking license without branches, which is currently the only full license under the country’s framework. The company’s startup capital is approximately $81 million, and its team is relatively small, with about 60 members.

Interestingly, what Revolut values most is not FUPS’s user base or technological strength, but that regulatory license. This reflects a reality: in digital financial competition, sometimes obtaining a compliance ticket is more important than anything else. For Revolut, acquiring a local bank with an existing license is much faster than applying for one from scratch and also avoids complex approval processes. This strategy is becoming increasingly common in cross-border financial expansion.

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LightningAllInHero

· 01-10 15:14

Basically, it's about buying licenses. Regulation is really the ultimate moat in the financial business.

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MevHunter

· 01-10 11:32

Licenses are the truly scarce resource, more valuable than anything else.

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CoffeeOnChain

· 01-09 02:43

In simple terms, it's about buying a license; regulation is the real moat.

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GamefiEscapeArtist

· 01-08 09:21

Basically, it's about buying a license, not buying a business. This routine is too common. --- BDDK can't handle that, or everything is pointless. --- 81 million USD just for 60 people and a piece of paper. Revolut's financial strength is indeed solid. --- Is a regulatory license more valuable than user numbers? This is the gap between Web3 and traditional finance. --- It's another routine of acquiring local teams to change licenses, quick in and out. --- Is it easy to get a license in Turkey? It seems everyone around the world is playing this way. --- Compliance is the key. Competing with lawyers and products is more efficient than just focusing on technology. --- This is much smarter than the effort of applying from scratch. Having money makes it easier.

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MEV_Whisperer

· 01-07 15:57

Licensing is the real moat; users and technology can develop gradually, but if you can't get this right, everything else is pointless.

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VitalikFanAccount

· 01-07 15:56

Licenses are the real hard currency, worth more than anything else.

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NestedFox

· 01-07 15:54

Regulatory licenses are worth this much, it seems Revolut also has to humble itself and seek a ticket.