UK Payments Startup Integrates Bitcoin After $66 Million Fundraise

A fintech startup in the UK is launching a suite of cryptocurrency services following the completion of a $66m Series B funding round.

According to a report from Reuters, Revolut's funding came from a group of backers including Index Ventures, which is an investor in industry startups BitPay and Xapo. Balderton Capital and Ribbit Capital also took part in the round, the startup said in a blog post.

The company, which reportedly has around 700,000 customers (including 400,000 based in the UK), offers a digital banking app as well as payment card services via MasterCard.

Those services are expanding to include bitcoin payment options, with integrations for litecoin and ether on the way. The startup told Reuters that demand for bitcoin among its user base had prompted the move.

Posts on Revolut's community forum indicate that requests for a bitcoin option date back to as early as last summer.

Though it has to date served a primarily European market, Revolut said that it is looking to advance its offerings abroad, with product pushes planned for Asia and North America.

Disclosure: CoinDesk is a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which has an ownership stake in BitPay and Xapo. 

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