Slovenian users of fintech giant Revolut have found themselves in a rather unusual situation. On Revolut's American website, Slovenia has been added to the list of countries that cannot send money from the US, and cannot receive transfers to the US. In other words: if your uncle from New York wants to send you money for your birthday, he will have to resort to old-fashioned Western Union or revert to bank transfers - Revolut simply won't let him.
On the same list Revolution are usually countries that Western financial institutions associate with sanctions, high money laundering risk or unstable conditions: Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela ... and several other African and Asian countries. It also includes the Russian regions of Luhansk and Donetsk and the Palestinian territories.
Slovenia is a real exotic on this list – the only EU member state to find itself alongside such “global financial superpowers”. Apart from us, the only other countries in the region mentioned are Albania, Kosovo and Belarus. And to make the irony complete: even Antarctica is on the list.
Dual Reality: US vs. UK – Revolut
If we look at the British site of Revolut, Slovenia is not on the list of banned countries. So in London they have no problems with us – it only gets complicated in the US, where the company is seeking a banking license and expanding its business. Why? That remains a mystery.
Revolut has so far only responded that they are “looking into the matter.” This is the corporate equivalent of muttering “hm, interesting” when they run out of arguments.
Possible reasons for Slovenia's blacklisting on Revolut
There is no official explanation, but regulatory and banking experts mention a few possible scenarios:
- US regulatory filters: The US has stricter standards for preventing money laundering and terrorist financing. If they detected any irregularities in Slovenian transactions or deficiencies in reporting, this could trigger a blockade.
- Technical error or delay in coordination: Revolut operates with separate entities in different jurisdictions. It is possible that this is an old or incorrectly configured list that has not yet been harmonized with the EU in the US.
- Political-bureaucratic collateral damage: Slovenia has come under scrutiny in the past for some bad practices in the banking sector (money laundering cases in the 2010s). Although the picture is much clearer today, American regulators don't have a short memory.
- System testing before US license: Revolut is in the middle of the process of obtaining a banking license in the US. The interim “blacklist” could be a temporary security measure until all the regulatory details are clarified.
Revolut: fintech giant with 180 thousand Slovenians
British Revolut, founded in 2015, now has more than 60 million users worldwide. In Slovenia alone, it is already used by around 180,000 people – almost one in ten residents. Last year, the company generated $4 billion in revenue and $1 billion in net profit. It is currently valued at $75 billion, and employees are allowed to sell shares.
In the EU, Revolut operates under a license from the Central Bank of Lithuania, which allows it to operate in all member states, including Slovenia.
What does this mean for users?
So for now, there's a simple rule: if you're Slovenian and want to send money to or from the US via Revolut, you'll hit a wall. In the EU and elsewhere, the app works normally. If it turns out that the reason is technical or bureaucratic, Slovenia may be removed from the list in a few months. But if it's a deeper regulatory problem, the story will take longer.
Until then, Slovenians can safely use Revolut to pay for coffee in Rome, hotel rooms in Paris, and cocktails in Bangkok. However, our uncle will still have to transfer money from New York the old-fashioned way – almost retro, you could say.
