Revolut Lite app now available in Armenia, Macao, Moldova: How can it facilitate money transfers?

The Revolut Lite app, which enables fast and secure money transfers in more than 25 currencies, is now available in Armenia, Macao, and Moldova. This app enables to send and receive money in 42 countries—and with zero commission.

In an interview with NEWS.am Tech, Dominik Zins, Head of Revolut Lite, told what this app is, how it differs from the full version of Revolut, and what advantages it can provide to the residents of Armenian.

Revolut Lite: What is it and why do we need it?

Revolut is a global financial superapp with over 30 million users worldwide. It currently operates in 42 countries and, according to Dominik Zins, includes dozens of services and features such as payments, money transfers, analysis and budgeting tools, storage, account separation tools, shopping from many popular brands, trading functions, and much more. The availability of certain features of this app may vary depending on the region in which it is used.

In the first three months of 2023, Revolut users made about 85 million zero-commission uniform transactions. By sending money to friends, family, and colleagues through this app, users have saved millions of pounds/euros/dollars in fees that they would have had to pay if they had chosen the traditional money transfer method.

Revout Lite is Revolut’s optimized version that enables to send money to users in other countries where this version of the app is also available (Chile, Azerbaijan, and Sri Lanka), as well as in countries where the full version of the app is available (UK , EU, US, Japan, Singapore, Australia, Brazil, soon also India, New Zealand, and Mexico). Users from the same countries can also receive money transfers.

With Revout Lite, you can send money not only to another user of this app, but also to bank accounts and cards that are not linked to this app.

"We have a strong partnership with many Financial Institutions globally (including Visa) that allow us to deliver rapid real-time payments," Zins said.

Three different types of transactions are available to users in Armenia:

• Peer-to-peer, i.e. money transfer between two Revolut customers; such transfers are made without commission and can be made in more than 40 countries where both the Lite and the full app are available;
• Transfers to/from Revolut bank accounts that are not Revolut customers; in this case, a transfer commission of 1% is applied, and the minimum commission is US$1.
• Transfers to/from Revolut bank cards that are not Revolut customers; these transfers are charged a 3% commission, with a minimum commission of US$1.

According to Zins, the user receives information about the amount of commission even before making the transfer. And for international transfers, he will be offered a competitive exchange rate.

Zins added that due to the launch of this app in Armenia and two other countries, the 1% and 3% commissions being transferred to bank accounts and cards that are not Revolut customers through the Lite app will be canceled until August 30.

Is it difficult to use the app?

There are many users in Armenia, Macao, and Moldova who are not familiar enough with digital financial services and new technologies. However, transferring money using Revolut Lite is, as Zins pointed out, quite simple; even those who do not have much experience in using such apps will be able to manage without difficulty.

Users in the six countries where this app is available can download it and sign up. With the help of this application, they will be able to send money all over the world, and, moreover, most transfers are made within one business day.

"During the years, Revolut has set a standard in the field of money apps: we have created one of the most user-friendly and easy to use app in the world, and many other financial and banking apps got inspired from Revolut. Our app has been designed to be used by either young people or older ones and we are sure that people in Armenia, Macao, and Moldova will be able to use it frictionlessly since the very beginning. In Moldova for example, where many people were waiting for Revolut app to arrive since time, due to the close relations they have with Eastern European markets, we already have over 10,000 customers, with 90% of transfers happening in three seconds. According to our internal data, existing customers have transferred over £250,000, with an average transaction value of £75 (1,702 MDL). This is to say how quick can adoption be when you offer a needed service which is also easy to use,” Zins said.

For whom can such an app be useful?

Since this app enables fast and secure international money transfers in more than two dozen currencies, it will primarily be of interest to expats, resettlers, and foreign students. But, of course, the list of potential users of this app is not limited to them.

As Zins noted, the app is suitable for absolutely anyone who needs to send or receive money, once or regularly. They can be parents sending money to children studying in another city, friends who need to transfer money to each other for one reason or another, customers who want to pay for certain goods or services online, and many others.

Future plans: What to expect from Revolut in Armenia and rest of the world?

Revolut Lite was launched in Armenia only recently, and the company plans to study the market response before considering launching new products or services.

As for Revolut globally, Zins noted that the company continues to effectively expand its product and customer base by expanding into new markets. After Brazil last May, the full version of this app was launched in New Zealand.

"In addition, we are looking into launching Revolut Lite in other markets in the coming months," said the app's boss.

According to him, the company is also working towards "enriching" this app with new functions and opportunities.

“In Europe, where our app is the most developed, we have recently introduced Experiences, a marketplace where to book tours and activities to enjoy while on holiday and get cashback, and Ultra, our new luxury plan with platinum card and empowered services for top-level travel and lifestyle,” Dominik Zins said.