Right this moment marked the launch of Robinhood‘s beforehand introduced brokerage providers within the UK. The launch represents Robinhood’s first enlargement past the U.S.
In its announcement, the corporate stated UK prospects may have entry to over 6,000 U.S.-listed shares and American Depository Receipts (ADRs) at launch. Options will embody commission-free buying and selling, high-yield curiosity on uninvested money, prolonged market hours, and fee-free foreign money conversion between GBP and USD.
Robinhood goals to spark increased retail funding internationally because it did within the U.S. after pioneering its zero-commission, no-minimum-balance brokerage mannequin in 2013. The corporate claims this innovation has, up to now, saved its customers billions in charges and helped increase U.S. family fairness possession by 27% between 2013-2022.
The worldwide push comes at the same time as Robinhood’s income has just lately declined. In Q3 2023, transaction-based income fell 55% year-over-year, probably owed partly to crypto bear market situations.
Robinhood’s place
Along with the UK brokerage, Robinhood has revealed ambitions to supply cryptocurrency buying and selling within the EU pending regulatory approval. The corporate presently holds over $3 billion price of Bitcoin to custody consumer crypto balances in chilly storage. Analysis reveals Robinhood additionally owns the fifth largest Ethereum pockets, with over $2.5 billion in holdings.
Cryptocurrencies made up 12% of Robinhood’s transaction income in Q3 2023, down from 24% in Q3 2022. Nevertheless, crypto trade enlargement nonetheless options prominently in administration’s development forecasts as buyer balances proceed rising regardless of market volatility.
Robinhood additionally faces macroeconomic challenges that will influence its world ambitions, together with excessive inflation, rising rates of interest, and tightening disposable earnings.
In the meantime, early Robinhood investor Alphabet Inc. liquidated the final of the 612,214 Robinhood shares it beforehand held as of August. The tech large started incrementally lowering its stake as Robinhood’s falling transaction volumes posed headwinds.
The trail ahead stays advanced as Robinhood navigates first-time enlargement into the UK and different focused markets in opposition to this financial backdrop.