Reeves says UK ‘open for business’ as Revolut pledges £3bn new investment

Rachel Reeves has said the UK is getting “ahead in the global race for investment” as Revolut unveiled plans to plug £3 billion into its expansion in the country.

The Chancellor welcomed the pledge at the opening of the financial firm’s new head office in London’s Canary Wharf.

It follows major US financial firms last week announcing billions of pounds worth of investment into jobs and growth in the UK.

Ms Reeves said: “The UK is well and truly open for business under this Government.

“Through our ‘Leeds reforms’ we’re making Britain the best place for financial services companies to do business, pushing us ahead in the global race for investment and putting more money in people’s pockets through the plan for change.”

The “Leeds reforms” package, unveiled in July, included measures to loosen lending rules and change current regulatory systems for banks.

The Chancellor said that “for too long, Britain has been the laggard of productivity performance,” adding: “Ever since the financial crisis, our productivity has lagged behind our competitors.”

“So while President Trump announced late last week that he will make it harder to bring talent to the US, we want to make it easier to bring talent to the UK,” she said.

This will include expanding “global talent and high potential” visa routes and making them easier to access by firms that want to hire people from abroad.

“The opening of this fantastic new headquarters in Canary Wharf also, I believe, marks a further vote of confidence in the UK economy and in our future.”

Revolut’s cash injection, spread across five years, is set to go towards the creation of 1,000 jobs in the UK, particularly within its fast-growing business accounts division.

It will also help fund the development of its business infrastructure from the new global headquarters in the capital’s financial district.

Furthermore, a portion of the investment is understood to be earmarked for fully capitalising its UK bank, which it is in the process of setting up.

The global fintech relocated to the newly refurbished YY London building in the centre of Canary Wharf, installing a large Revolut sign on to the top of the new office space.

It signals a boost for the city amid a series of large firms shifting away from the UK to focus on other international markets such as the US.

Revolut secured a banking licence in the UK last year following a three-year wait for approval to operate in its home market.

The licence came with restrictions, however, meaning it is still not able to fully operate as a bank and hold customer deposits above a total of £50,000.

Co-founder Nik Storonsky said it was his “number one priority” to roll out the UK bank, having surpassed 12 million customers in the country.

Last week, US asset management company Blackstone pledged to invest £90 billion in cash in the UK on top of £10 billion previously announced to develop data centres.