Revolut: What Early EIS Investors Made

Revolut is the UK's most valuable private company, with a valuation that surpassed $45 billion in its 2024 funding round. It began as a prepaid card startup with a currency exchange feature, raised its first institutional funding through Seedcamp and angel investors, and reached SEIS and EIS eligibility in its earliest rounds. For investors who backed it before it became a household name, the returns have been extraordinary.

The early funding story

Revolut was founded by Nikolay Storonsky and Vlad Yatsenko in 2014. The company launched in 2015 after raising seed funding through Seedcamp and angel investors. Early rounds were structured to qualify for EIS, giving early investors the benefit of income tax relief and CGT exemption on any gains.

The company's growth was rapid. By 2016 it had raised a Series A; by 2017, a Series B at significantly higher valuations. Investors who backed Revolut in its seed and Series A rounds saw their valuations increase dramatically through successive funding rounds, long before any liquidity event was available.

The EIS investor experience

Investors who participated in early Revolut rounds received EIS3 certificates and claimed income tax relief at the time of investment. The shares they held were exempt from CGT (on the EIS-qualifying element) for gains made after the three-year holding period. For investors who have been able to sell secondary shares — or who participated in the 2024 primary round with secondary opportunities alongside — the returns have been substantial.

The important caveat: early Revolut investors have faced the challenge that every successful private company investor faces. Liquidity is limited and dependent on the company's decision to offer secondary sales or to pursue an IPO. Holding private company shares — even very valuable ones — is not the same as holding cash. The paper return is only realised when there is a buyer.

What the Revolut story tells us about EIS

Revolut is an outlier. The vast majority of seed-stage companies do not become $45 billion businesses. Most fail outright, and a minority return modest multiples. What Revolut illustrates is the asymmetry of early-stage venture returns: a small number of very large successes can generate portfolio-level returns even in a portfolio where most companies disappoint.

The EIS structure amplified those returns for qualifying investors: income tax relief reduced the effective entry cost by 30%, and the CGT exemption means the profits — when crystallised — are sheltered from a 24% tax that would otherwise apply.