Ex-Goldman Sachs boss in line to receive £25m in Revolut IPO

A string of City giants are set to pocket millions as Revolut plans a spectacular IPO on the London Stock Exchange.

Last week, the fintech firm finally received a UK banking licence from regulators after three years, paving the way for a blockbuster listing. This could happen next year and value the company at £35bn, according to reports.

Among the company’s early backers is Michael Sherwood, a former Goldman Sachs International boss who chairs Revolut’s remuneration committee. One of the most skilled traders of his time, he owns 42,660 shares and could pocket £25m from the listing.

Another City veteran who could be in for a payout is Martin Gilbert, who chairs the firm and owns 1,183 shares worth £700,000. He founded Aberdeen Asset Management in 1983 and joined Revolut’s board in 2020 to help manage its relationship with regulators.

But Revolut’s most controversial backer is Ian Hannam, the former head of global markets at JP Morgan. Hannam first invested in the company in 2017 and holds 49,257 shares worth £29m.

At JPMorgan, he was dubbed the “king of mining M&A” after taking a string of companies to the London market. In 2012, he was fined £450,000 by the Financial Services Authority for revealing inside information about a potential takeover of a company he was advising called Heritage Oil and Gas.

Despite this setback, he has continued to enjoy success with his consulting firm Hannam & Partners.

Russ Shaw of Tech London Advocate said: “There’s a lot riding on Revolut’s IPO. It’s set to make a lot of City celebrities rich, and they’ll be jumping for joy over the banking licence.”

Russian-born Revolut founder and CEO Nikolay Storonsky could amass a fortune of £5bn. Ukrainian co-founder and CTO Vladyslav Yatsenko could pocket £900m.

The company has faced a number of regulatory and compliance issues. Last year, the National Crime Agency reviewed how Revolut released up to £1.7m from accounts flagged as suspicious due to possible links to money laundering and other financial crimes.

The fintech company has more than nine million customers in the UK. Its app enables young, tech-savvy users to manage budgets and save more easily, spend and transfer money abroad, and buy and sell cryptocurrencies.

A Revolut spokesperson said of the IPO: “We are not focused on if, when or where we will go public. Right now, we are focused on further strengthening our governance framework, profitability, building new products and providing better, more cost-effective services to serve our growing global customer base.”

Revolut’s banking license means it can now accept deposits from customers. It is also free to offer other services, such as mortgage lending.

It says its “product roadmap” includes “a number of other core banking functions” including “mortgages and refinancing lending”. It has announced plans to enter the Irish mortgage market next year.