Russian clients living in the E.U. struggle to regain banking access after fintech company Revolut freezes accounts

Revolut, an online bank popular among expats in the European Union, has started freezing accounts belonging to Russian and Belarusian citizens. According to the company, the measure is an effort to comply with the latest package of E.U. sanctions against Russia, which was adopted on October 23. The abrupt move has left clients scrambling to regain access to their money. And those who have tried to submit proof of E.U. residency have been encountering technical problems, leaving them cut off from their funds for days. Meduza sums up what we know about the Revolut freeze.

On the night of October 31, the online bank Revolut began sending emails to Russian clients asking for proof of valid E.U. residency. Minutes later, many of those same users received another message: their accounts had been frozen. The second email also stated that their banking agreements with Revolut would be terminated on December 31, 2025.

The restrictions targeted customers who had opened their accounts using E.U. residence permits or long-term stay visas. With their accounts suspended, they could no longer use their cards, deposit funds, withdraw cash from ATMs, or transfer money to other Revolut accounts.

It’s unclear how many people have been affected. Mediazona reported at least five confirmed cases. Several Revolut clients also told Meduza, BBC News Russian, and the outlet Volna that they received similar notifications. According to Zerkalo, Belarusian citizens are facing the same issue.

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Users who spoke to Volna said that as of November 1, even those with valid E.U. residence permits couldn’t upload documents to restore access to their accounts. Revolut’s customer support did not respond promptly at the time. Later, the company acknowledged a technical issue that temporarily prevented users from submitting documents through its system.

Revolut explained its decision as an effort to comply with international sanctions imposed on Russia over its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. In an official statement to BBC News Russian, the company said:

In its messages to customers, Revolut pointed to the E.U.’s 19th sanctions package against Russia, approved in late October, saying it prohibits the company from providing “payment services or electronic money services” to Russian and Belarusian citizens who do not hold residency or citizenship in E.U. or EEA countries, or in Switzerland.

The bloc’s plan to impose sanctions against Russia that would affect third-country banks, crypto platforms, and digital currencies was announced back in September. However, as Deutsche Welle noted, there had been no reports of similar restrictions for clients of brick-and-mortar E.U. banks — suggesting that Revolut’s actions might reflect its own “interpretation” of the sanctions.

A multinational bank headquartered in London, Revolut operates exclusively online and does not have physical branches. However, reporters from The Bell found that the 19th E.U. sanctions package expands the bloc’s existing ban on providing cryptocurrency-related services to Russians by adding two new categories: payment and electronic money services. This suggests, the outlet concluded, that Revolut’s move wasn’t arbitrary — and that other European payment services might soon follow suit.

Some crypto users have already encountered related restrictions. Andrey Avramenko, who runs the Telegram channel OhMySwift, wrote that the crypto exchange Bybit stopped opening wallets for Russian citizens, citing one of his followers’ experiences.

According to the company, the limitation applies only to Bybit EU, the exchange’s platform for residents of the European Economic Area. The site lists its services as unavailable to citizens of Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and the United States. Meanwhile, the travel-focused Telegram channel Nu che, narod, pognali! reported that the global Bybit exchange has not imposed similar restrictions on Russians. Its website only states that services are unavailable in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine.

On the evening of November 1, Novaya Gazeta Europe reported that some Revolut users had managed to regain access to their accounts. In other cases, Revolut has restored partial functionality for clients who were in the process of obtaining residence permits and provided relevant documentation. One woman told the outlet that her account remained blocked but that customer service advised her to wait until November 9, when the technical issues were expected to be resolved.

Other media outlets also confirmed that Revolut had begun lifting some restrictions. The Bell reported that one client in Latvia, who had applied for a residence permit, was allowed to resume card payments — though cash withdrawals and transfers remained blocked. However, another Latvia-based customer said her request to lift the restrictions was denied.