Nik Storonsky on Revolut’s Path to $100 Billion: KPIs, Hiring, and Global Domination

Revolut’s CEO, Nik Storonsky, sat down to discuss the company’s ambitious growth plans, its unique approach to leadership, and the challenges of scaling a global fintech giant. From mastering KPI-driven management to navigating complex regulatory landscapes and eyeing a massive US market entry, Storonsky shared insights into what makes Revolut tick and its strategy for reaching a staggering $100 billion valuation.

Key Takeaways

• KPI-Driven Leadership: Revolut operates on a rigorous goal-setting system, cascading objectives from the company level down to individual employees, with quarterly performance reviews based on metrics, skills, and cultural values.
• Hiring for Excellence: Storonsky prioritizes hiring "self-guided missiles" – individuals who can set and achieve goals independently. He believes in quick assessments, with underperformers typically identified within the first three months.
• Learning from Mistakes: A significant learning experience involved hiring experienced managers through executive recruiters, a strategy that largely failed, leading to a shift towards internal development and a more hands-on approach to hiring for new roles.
• Brand Marketing Evolution: Initially focused purely on performance marketing, Revolut now acknowledges the importance of brand marketing, investing in assets like private jets, though measurement remains a challenge.
• Regulatory Navigation: Building a regulated business requires obtaining licenses early. Storonsky learned that proactive engagement with regulators, explaining the business in simple terms with data, is more effective than relying on intermediaries.
• US Market Strategy: The US presents unique challenges due to its reliance on bank partnerships, slower processes, and a credit-driven economy. Revolut plans to win by eventually launching its own US banking license and offering a full suite of financial products, including credit cards.
• Product Development: Revolut employs a "portfolio approach" to testing new product ideas, running numerous "bets" in parallel. While not all succeed, the successful ones drive significant growth, and the company has a structured process for scaling promising ventures.
• Global Ambitions: In three years, Revolut aims to be a leading, fully localized bank in 90% of its target markets, expanding its active user base significantly and solidifying its position as a global financial powerhouse.

KPI-Based Leadership and Building a High-Performing Team

Revolut’s leadership is deeply rooted in Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The company sets clear, quantifiable goals annually, which are then broken down and assigned to departments, teams, and individuals. This ensures everyone is aligned and working towards common objectives. Performance is reviewed quarterly, evaluating not just metrics but also skills and cultural fit.

When it comes to building his team, Storonsky has a distinct philosophy. He looks for individuals who are like "self-guided missiles" – excellent performers who can set their own goals and achieve them without constant direction. Strong performers need a clear goal, while average performers require weekly check-ins. Those who consistently fall short are not a good fit for Revolut’s fast-paced environment. He emphasizes that if someone isn’t delivering within the first three months, it’s unlikely they will improve significantly later.

Evolving Leadership and Hiring Strategies

Storonsky admits that his approach to leadership and hiring has evolved. He learned a hard lesson about scaling the team, particularly the mistake of relying too heavily on experienced professional managers hired through executive recruiters. Many of these hires didn’t work out, leading to a significant turnover and a realization that internal talent development and a more direct hiring approach are key.

He now believes in personally interviewing extensively for new roles he hasn’t hired for before. By interviewing many people in a specific field, he gains the necessary skills to assess and select the best candidates. This hands-on approach is crucial for roles in areas like compliance, recruitment, or people operations, where he might not have prior direct experience.

Navigating Regulation and the Crypto Landscape

Obtaining a banking license has been a significant learning curve for Revolut. Storonsky stresses the importance of securing licenses before acquiring a large customer base. Regulators become much more thorough when dealing with established companies, which can significantly lengthen the licensing process. However, he also believes that with a tech-driven approach, it’s possible to build efficient governance and processes even within a regulated environment.

His relationship with regulators has improved as he’s learned to engage directly, explaining Revolut’s innovative model in clear terms and backing it up with data that demonstrates superior performance compared to traditional banks. This direct approach, he feels, is more effective than relying on intermediaries.

Regarding crypto, Storonsky’s biggest lesson is simple: never speculate. While acknowledging that much of crypto’s current use case is speculative, he sees valid applications in stablecoins and enabling faster money transfers. The main challenge with Revolut’s crypto product has been navigating the complex web of different licenses and rules across various countries, which can sometimes lead to inefficient blocking of legitimate transactions.

The US Market Challenge and Global Expansion

Storonsky finds the US neo-banking market particularly puzzling. He believes the reliance on partnering with existing banks, which slows down innovation and product development, is a major hurdle. Furthermore, the US market is credit-driven, and without a banking license, it’s difficult to offer competitive credit products, which are highly attractive to US consumers.

Revolut’s strategy for the US involves first securing its UK banking license, which will then enable it to apply for a US license. The goal is to eventually offer a digital bank with credit card functionalities and all the financial tools customers need in a single app, a proposition they believe hasn’t been effectively delivered in the US yet.

Beyond the US, Revolut is actively expanding in Latin America, securing licenses in Mexico and pursuing them in other key markets. The company’s product development is driven by a "portfolio approach," testing numerous new ideas simultaneously. While some "bets" don’t pan out, the successful ones, like E-money accounts and Revolut Junior, scale rapidly due to Revolut’s massive customer base and efficient infrastructure.

The Future of Revolut and Banking

In three years, Storonsky envisions Revolut operating in 50 markets, being the number one player in 90% of them, and fully localized as a bank in 40 markets. He aims to grow the active user base from 10 million to 30-40 million. He also predicts a future of consolidation in the banking sector, with fewer, larger global players emerging, enabled by technology that allows for scalable, international operations.

Before going public, Revolut needs to further strengthen its controls, though Storonsky notes they already operate much like a public company due to their banking status. He’s open to an IPO but acknowledges the complexities of listing, noting that the US market offers greater liquidity and a more favorable trading environment compared to the UK, partly due to stamp duty.

Defining Success and Work-Life Balance

Storonsky’s definition of success is tied to achieving personal goals, whatever they may be. He doesn’t believe money itself brings happiness but rather serves as a tool to achieve other objectives. A key goal he still wants to achieve is winning the US market, proving that European startups can succeed there.

He holds a strong view on work-life balance, suggesting that a disbalanced life, characterized by intense focus and sacrifice, is more conducive to achieving ambitious goals and can ultimately lead to happiness. He describes his own life as consistently imbalanced, filled with pressure, stress, and the need to solve difficult problems, which requires a lifestyle that maximizes energy levels.

When asked about competitors, he respects companies like Nubank in Latin America for their execution and JPMorgan Chase in the US for their strength. He also acknowledges the power of companies like WeChat in Asia. However, he finds Asia a harder market to penetrate due to regulatory barriers and fundamentally different user behaviors and cultural alignments compared to the US and Europe.

Reflecting on his journey, Storonsky wishes he had started Revolut faster and cheaper. He also believes that working and living in multiple cities has broadened his perspective significantly, making him more open-minded than if he had stayed in one place. His advice to young people is to pursue what they genuinely enjoy. For consumer brands, he admires Apple for its product innovation and brand strength. If he could be CEO of any company for a day, he’d explore biom medicine or genetics, fields he knows little about but finds fascinating.