Revolut ‘Welcome To My Bank’: Norton in the saddle

With the Claudia Winkleman Show still not quite living up to its billing, there are no doubt many people missing “national treasure” Graham Norton. Luckily, help is at hand from challenger financial services brand Revolut, which is bringing back the Irishman to front its first campaign since getting its full UK banking licence.

“Welcome To My Bank” has been developed in partnership with agency Anomaly, and aims to mark a defiant new era for the brand by challenging the “stuffy” status quo of high street banks.

In the launch 30-second film, Norton ditches his studio set for a saddle, delivering a dry, witty takedown of the vague, poetic promises often found in traditional bank advertising. By asking the simple question “What is a bank?” Norton invites the British public to look past the jargon and embrace a faster, more integrated financial future.

The campaign anchors on the brand line “Banking & Beyond” and aims to position Revolut as not just a place to bank, but as a lifestyle ecosystem where spending, saving, investing, travel and more converge.

Launching this week across TV, digital, social, and online video in the UK, the film is supported by a wider suite of content bringing Norton’s playful tone to audiences nationwide.

It signals a major milestone in Revolut’s growth trajectory following its recent commitment to invest £3bn ($4bn) and create 1,000 high-skilled jobs in the UK.

Revolut chief marketing and growth officer Antoine Le Nel said: “To launch our first campaign as a UK bank, we needed a voice that resonates in every living room in the country. Graham is the perfect bridge. He’s a household name who has always done things his own way. He represents exactly what Revolut stands for: a bank that is sophisticated and secure and straight-up, never hiding behind jargon.”

Anomaly chief creative officer Toby Allen added: “Revolut is a challenger brand that has been adopted and loved by the mainstream. Graham is exactly that too. With this campaign we set out to deliver a simple banking message in a way that lets the personality of both shine through.”

So, what is the consensus around the Decision Marketing office?

Graham Norton on a horse? What’s not to like?

Whether this 30-second execution alone will be enough to get people to switch banks – a notoriously difficult feat – is another matter but they have to start somewhere.

And, we do quite like it, if only for the fact that a) unlike many others celebs, our Graham rarely appears in advertising campaigns and b) it doesn’t make wild claims about what an amazing bank Revolut is.

Decision Marketing Adometer: A ‘saddle up and ride’ 8 out of 10