Revolut has been fined €11.5 million in Italy after regulators determined the company provided misleading information about fees and terms for its investment products. The Italian competition watchdog, AGCM, found that the fintech’s advertisements suggesting customers could trade with zero commission and invest in fractional shares from as little as €1 were deceptive. The ruling underscores the growing regulatory pressure on fast-expanding fintech platforms that promise easy, low-cost access to financial markets.
The AGCM also criticized Revolut for unfairly restricting some user accounts and failing to adequately explain timelines and eligibility criteria when transitioning customers from Lithuanian bank accounts — under which it held its European banking licence — to Italian bank accounts. According to the watchdog, the lack of clear guidance created confusion among consumers regarding access to funds and investment options.
Revolut Securities Europe UAB, a group company providing investment services across Europe, and Revolut Group Holdings Ltd were each fined €5 million for not providing “clear and comprehensive information about the presence of additional costs and the features of [their] commission-free investments,” the AGCM said in a statement released Thursday. The regulator emphasized that fractional shares differ significantly from whole shares in terms of investment risk, ownership rights, and transferability, highlighting the potential for customers to misunderstand the nature of their holdings.
The companies were additionally fined €1.5 million for failing to provide sufficient details about the requirements and timeframe for obtaining an Italian international bank account number. The watchdog stressed that transparency is essential to ensure that customers fully understand the limitations and obligations associated with cross-border banking arrangements.
Revolut, founded in 2015 and now serving approximately 70 million users worldwide, said it “strongly disagrees” with the findings and intends to appeal the decision in Italian courts. The fintech has been expanding aggressively across Europe, recently securing its full UK banking licence after a four-year regulatory review that raised questions about risk controls and the management of its rapidly growing global operations.
The AGCM’s ruling reflects broader European concerns about fintech marketing practices and consumer protection. Platforms offering low-cost trading and easy access to investment products must balance growth ambitions with regulatory compliance, particularly when advertising highly accessible services like fractional shares or commission-free trading.
While Revolut’s advertisements targeted convenience and affordability, the regulator noted that customers may not have been fully informed about potential additional costs or the distinctions between traditional and fractional shares. As fintech platforms scale rapidly across multiple jurisdictions, such clarity becomes a critical requirement to prevent misleading or incomplete representations.
The fine marks one of the most significant regulatory actions against a digital-first European banking platform in recent years. It comes at a time when fintech firms are under heightened scrutiny for marketing tactics and transparency in the fast-evolving investment services sector. The outcome of Revolut’s appeal will be closely watched by industry observers as an indicator of how regulators intend to enforce consumer protections across Europe.
