Capital

Storonsky's 29% Stake Would Top $145bn at $500bn

Nik Storonsky is reportedly negotiating a new Revolut share award tied to a $500bn valuation, four times the $115bn mark from July's secondary sale. What is confirmed, what is not.

CapitalBy Servola Tech Desk2026-08-074 min read

AI-assisted, edited by humans. | Editor-in-Chief: Leon Soliman | Editorial standards

Storonsky's 29% Stake Would Top $145bn at $500bn

Key takeaways

Revolut co-founder and chief executive Nik Storonsky, who holds a 29 percent stake in the fintech, is reportedly in talks for a new share deal that would expand his holding further if the company reaches a 500 billion dollar valuation, more than four times the 115 billion dollar mark set in Revolut's most recent employee secondary sale; even without a single extra share, his current 29 percent would already be worth roughly 145 billion dollars at that price, according to Financial Times reporting cited by Sifted, the Irish Times and City AM.
No agreement has been announced and the talks remain unconfirmed. Revolut declined to comment on individual compensation when asked by City AM, and none of the outlets reporting the story cite a signed term sheet or board approval, so the 500 billion dollar figure is a target reportedly under discussion, not Revolut's current valuation.
The reported talks build on Storonsky's existing package, which lifts his stake toward roughly 40 percent if Revolut reaches a 200 billion dollar valuation, the same figure the company has floated as its target for a possible 2028 stock market listing. Staged, valuation-triggered founder awards of this size are common in the United States, most visibly at Tesla, and rare among European companies.
A 500 billion dollar mark would place Revolut, still a private company with no shares traded on any exchange, in the same range as Visa and ahead of all but the largest public companies in continental Europe, a gap driven by how private secondary sales price scarce shares among a small circle of insiders and new investors, not by any public market test.
For UK and EU businesses running Revolut Business accounts, and for investors weighing exposure to fintech secondaries, the more useful signal is timing: Storonsky described a listing as roughly two years away in an April interview, which points to 2028 and 200 billion dollars as the operative near-term target, with 500 billion dollars sitting well beyond it as a longer horizon marker.

What is reportedly being discussed

Nik Storonsky, Revolut's co-founder and chief executive, is reportedly negotiating a new share award that would increase his stake in the fintech if the company reaches a 500 billion dollar valuation. The report originates with the Financial Times and was picked up the same week by Sifted, the Irish Times and City AM, all of whom attribute the core details to the Financial Times rather than to Revolut or Storonsky directly.

Revolut has not confirmed the talks. Asked for comment, the company told City AM: "As a matter of company policy, we do not comment on the specific remuneration, incentive packages, or private compensation structures of any individual employee." No term sheet, signed agreement or board approval has been reported, so the accurate description is that Storonsky and the company are said to be discussing a new arrangement, not that one exists.

The math behind the number, and the deal it builds on

Storonsky currently holds about 29 percent of Revolut, a stake he confirmed in a Russian-language interview in December. That percentage was last priced in July, when Revolut confirmed an employee secondary share sale that valued the company at 115 billion dollars, up from 75 billion dollars less than a year earlier. At that price, Storonsky's stake is worth roughly 33 billion dollars on paper.

The new talks reportedly follow the shape of an existing package: Storonsky's current deal lifts his stake toward roughly 40 percent if Revolut reaches a 200 billion dollar valuation, the figure the company has set as its target for a possible 2028 listing. A 500 billion dollar trigger would sit well above that milestone. Even if his stake never moved past 29 percent, reaching 500 billion dollars would put his existing holding at about 145 billion dollars; any additional shares granted under a new award would push that figure higher still.

What a founder award this size says about private fintech pricing

Staged, valuation-triggered pay packages of this scale have one clear precedent: Tesla's compensation plan for Elon Musk, which pays out in tranches as the company's market capitalisation crosses pre-agreed thresholds. That structure works because Tesla is a listed company whose valuation is set continuously by public buyers and sellers. Revolut is not. Its 115 billion dollar mark, and any future 500 billion dollar mark, are set by a small number of insiders and new investors agreeing a price for a secondary sale, not by a market anyone can trade into or out of on demand.

That distinction matters for how the number should be read. A 500 billion dollar target would put Revolut ahead of every continental European public company outside the largest energy and luxury groups, and in the same range as Visa, while remaining a private company that has never had its price tested by an open market. It is a reasonable target for Revolut's leadership to set internally. It is not, on its own, evidence that Revolut is actually worth that much to a buyer with no relationship to the company.

What the timeline signals for investors and business customers

The more concrete date in this story is the IPO target, not the 500 billion dollar figure. Revolut has told investors it is aiming for a 2028 listing at roughly 200 billion dollars, and Storonsky himself described a listing as being about two years away during an April television interview, which lines up with that target. The 500 billion dollar talks appear to be Revolut's leadership planning a next-stage incentive before the 200 billion dollar milestone has even been reached, which reads as confidence in the 2028 plan rather than a change to it.

For UK and EU businesses running day-to-day payments through Revolut Business accounts, and for investors weighing exposure to fintech secondaries ahead of an eventual listing, the practical takeaway is to treat 2028 and 200 billion dollars as the milestone to watch, and 500 billion dollars as a longer-range marker that depends on both a listing happening and Revolut's growth continuing well beyond it.

Frequently asked questions

Has Revolut confirmed a $500bn valuation or a new deal for Nik Storonsky?

No. The reports originate with the Financial Times and describe talks in progress, not a signed agreement or an official valuation. Revolut told City AM it does not comment on individual compensation structures, and no term sheet or board approval has been reported. Treat the 500 billion dollar figure as a target under discussion, not a confirmed valuation.

How does 500 billion dollars compare with what Revolut is actually worth today?

Revolut's most recent price comes from a July employee secondary share sale that valued the company at 115 billion dollars, itself a private, insider-priced mark rather than a public market valuation. 500 billion dollars would be more than four times that figure. Both numbers describe what a small group of insiders and new investors agreed to pay, not a price tested by an open exchange.

When might Revolut actually go public?

Revolut has told investors it is targeting a listing around 2028 at a valuation near 200 billion dollars, and Storonsky said in an April television interview that a listing was roughly two years away, consistent with that plan. The reported 500 billion dollar share-deal talks are separate from, and well beyond, that 2028 and 200 billion dollar target.

The number that matters most here is not 500 billion dollars, it is 2028. Revolut's leadership appears to be negotiating a founder incentive built for a valuation the company has not targeted publicly, while its actual stated milestone, a 200 billion dollar listing, sits years and 300 billion dollars away. That gap is worth remembering every time a private, insider-priced mark gets reported as if it were a market fact: it describes what a small group of people agreed to pay each other, not what an open market has tested. Storonsky's 29 percent is already worth roughly 145 billion dollars on paper at the number under discussion. Whether it is ever worth that to anyone outside the deal depends entirely on Revolut reaching a public listing, and on what an open market decides to pay once it can.

RevolutNik StoronskyFintech valuationFounder equityIPOPrivate markets

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