Revolut builds each new market's team top-down, starting with senior executives and then hiring for each feature planned for launch, shaped by local regulation.
Valerie Danilenko, Revolut's head of expansions recruitment, says the OCC's conditional approval for its US National Bank has made candidates see Revolut as more established and less risky.
Revolut is hiring vigorously in the US, mostly in the Tri State area, and its problem solving interview uses a trained interviewer who is not the hiring manager to reduce bias.
How Revolut recruits top talent when it enters a new market
Revolut treats hiring in each new market as a repeatable system that is then adjusted locally. It starts with the target operating model and the executive team, then adapts brand pitch, language limits and sourcing channels to each country. In the US, the conditional OCC approval for its bank has made recruiting easier because candidates now see Revolut as less risky.
Takeaways
Each new market's team follows a top-down blueprint. Revolut builds local teams according to its target operating model, or TOM. It hires the senior executive team first, then staff for each feature or product planned for launch, shaped by the roadmap and local regulation. Sometimes this means building from the CEO downwards.
Weak brand and language limit expansion talent pools. Revolut is less established outside Europe, so recruiters must sell the brand. English is the business language, but in some jurisdictions only 5% to 10% of the market speaks it, which narrows an already selective pool of top candidates.
Sourcing must adapt to each market. LinkedIn is Revolut's biggest recruiting tool, but it does not work everywhere. In Japan it is not among the most used platforms, so local platforms are needed. Recruitment events held globally have also worked well for the company.
US hiring is aggressive and centred on New York. Revolut is hiring vigorously in the US, mostly in the Tri State area around its New York office. It reuses frameworks from earlier launches, publishes salaries on postings and explains benefits on the first call, including a performance bonus and 401k.
Conditional OCC approval made US hiring easier. After the OCC gave conditional approval for Revolut's US National Bank, applications rose and candidate conversations became warmer. Candidates from traditional backgrounds now see Revolut as more established and less risky than a startup.
The problem solving interview tests structure, not field expertise. A trained interviewer who is not the hiring manager, possibly from another country or department, poses a scenario question. They assess how the candidate structures the answer and what solution results. This reduces bias and tests unfamiliar problems.
Candidates should be honest, prepared and avoid AI. Danilenko advises speaking from real experience, ideally data driven, and thinking out loud. Unapproved AI tools are usually obvious in interviews. She also urges people to put their hand up, since managers cannot know what you want unless you ask.
Advice for candidates
Prepare well and answer honestly.
Talk about your own experience and expertise, ideally with data.
Tap a name to go there · tap a line to see why they are linked
On this episode 2
Show 1
Think out loud during the problem solving interview.
Do not use unapproved AI tools, because they are normally obvious.
Put your hand up for opportunities. Danilenko did so for a management role and ended up leading the expansion team.