How does the Revolut Business API work? (UK)

If your company makes or receives payments through Revolut, it could be useful to know about Revolut Business APIs.

APIs are tools designed to automate and streamline tasks like payments. By setting up Revolut API integration, you can accept online payments from customers directly to your Merchant Account, automate payments to clients and collect subscriptions.

But how do you actually set up Revolut Business APIs? Read on to find out, as we’ll run through everything you need to know.

We’ll also touch on an alternative for automating payments, the Wise Business API. It’s a hugely useful tool for international businesses, as it offers easy automated batch payments, invoicing and payroll for multiple currencies. Once set up, it could save you time and money.

🔗 Learn more about Wise Business API

What is Revolut API?

An application programming interface (API) is a software intermediary, which enables two applications to talk to each other.

For payments, an API can link together all of the different entities involved in processing the transaction. For example, your merchant website or ecommerce platform, the payment gateway and the payment processor. This can all be automated, so that the transaction can be processed in a matter of seconds.

Revolut APIs can be used to automate business processes, including accepting and making payments. This can save a huge amount of time, reduce the risk of errors and help to provide a better experience for customers and clients.

How does Revolut Business API work?

APIs make requests, which are messages from your application (i.e. your website or ecommerce platform) and will contain set parameters. For example, details of the payment such as transaction amounts, item quantity and shipping address.

Once this request is issued, a response is sent back from the API to your application, and the task should be carried out automatically.

Revolut APIs work in the same way. They are only available for business account holders, although you can test them out first by creating a Sandbox account.¹

Find out more about the differences between Revolut personal and business accounts

How to setup Revolut API

To set up Revolut Business APIs, you’ll need to follow these steps:²

1. Sign up for a Revolut Business account, or create a Sandbox account to try out API functions in a test environment. It’s important to note though that you will need the business account in order to use APIs in a real production environment.
2. Set up a Sandbox environment, where you can use mock data and test out APIs safely in simulated scenarios.
3. Generate and load your Revolut API certificate, and get your signing key and authorisation code. Find out more about these steps here.
4. Make your first API request.

How to get Revolut API key

API credentials are generally needed to safeguard access to your account and ensure that only authorised users are setting up and managing APIs.

With Revolut Business, there are quite a few steps involved in getting hold of the right API credentials. You’ll need a certificate, a client assertion JWT (JSON Web Token), an authorisation code and then an access token.²

With quite a few steps involved in getting the required Revolut API documentation, it could be a good idea to bring in a developer to help you set up APIs within your Revolut account.

Types of Revolut APIs

Revolut offers a number of different APIs, all for different types of transactions and other use cases.

Here are just a few of the options available, and what you can use them for:³

• Accept payments through Revolut Pay
• Send payments via schedule, instant payments or a shared link. You can also create draft payments for approval to external bank accounts
• Set up and manage subscriptions for your customers
• Manage your money, accessing transaction details and account balances - this can help with streamlining reconciliation and other accounting processes.
• Initiate payments through the Open Banking API.

Revolut merchant API

If you run an ecommerce business, the Revolut merchant API can make it easier to accept payments from your customers. It provides a fast, secure single gateway for payments from any card, or from Revolut bank accounts.

Revolut payment API

Revolut also has a payment API, designed for any business wanting to automate bill and invoice payments. For example, to clients, suppliers or even to employees.

The API can be used to make regular, recurring transfers, as well as one-off payments. You can set up a schedule or share a link.

Revolut Open Banking API⁴

There’s also the Revolut Open Banking API, which acts as the gateway for third-party providers to integrate with Revolut users, customers and products. For example, it can be used by other money apps to build finance applications and initiate payments via Revolut.

Automate payments with Wise Business

Automating payments with API tools can save most businesses time and money. But it’s even more crucial for international companies, who face extra challenges when processing payments in multiple currencies.

The Wise Business API is the ideal solution for global businesses.

Open a Wise Business account and you can manage your company’s finances in 40+ currencies, all in one place. You can make batch payments to contractors and suppliers all over the world in just a few clicks, and manage expenses easily using Wise Business cards. Wise also integrates seamlessly with your accounting software.

But one of the best features of Wise Business has to be its powerful API. You can create and manage API tokens to automate payments and recurring transfers. It’s also a great tool for running payroll.

Want to see it in action? Take a look at this real-life example of Wise Business powering payment automation for Open Collective.

💡 Read Open Collective's complete case study

Pricing/fees: Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.

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After reading this guide, you should have a better idea of what Revolut Business APIs are and how they work. We’ve looked at the different types available, along with use cases - and given you a broad overview of what’s involved in setting up Revolut payment APIs.

With a little groundwork (and perhaps the help of a developer), you could save your business time by automating payments with APIs.

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Sources used for this article:

1. Revolut - Developer - Introduction to the Business API
2. Make your first API request | Revolut Docs
3. Revolut - Developer - Revolut Docs
4. Revolut - Developer - Open Banking API

Sources checked on 04-12-2023.