Rohinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD) is dealing with the legal warning pushed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Despite emerging regulatory challenges, Robinhood is looking to expand its presence in the crypto industry with a $200 million acquisition of Bitstamp.
Robinhood takes a bold step
According to reports, HOOD’s strategic move will allow it to grab institutional crypto clients as it can expand its offerings internationally. It is important to note that Bitstamp holds over 50 licenses and registrations worldwide. This can do wonders for Robinhood on its road to global expansion.
Bitstamp is much smaller than major exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken on the other hand, Robinhood is diversifying its services beyond stock and options trading. As reported, HOOD introduced retirement accounts, launched a credit card in March, and plans to offer futures trading by the end of this year.
Its crypto trading revenue has surged to $126 million in the first quarter from $38 million the previous year. However, Its crypto assets under custody had doubled to $26 billion by the end of March. Its monthly notional crypto trading volume nearly tripled year-over-year in April.
The global crypto market has surged immensely over the last year and this is directly reflected in the HOOD’s performance. The digital asset market cap now stands at around $2.63 trillion with an average trading volume of $90 billion.
Bitcoin (BTC), the biggest digital asset, has jumped by over 69% on year to date (YTD) basis. BTC is trading at an average price of $71,107, at the press time. Its 24 hour trading volume stands at $26.5 billion.
What’s in the deal?
“Everything we’ve been doing in the past few years has been because our engagement from customers has been that they want more crypto products,” said Johann Kerbrat, General Manager of Robinhood Crypto.
Kerbrat confirmed that Bitstamp would continue to operate under its existing brand. However, the deal is expected to close in the first half of next year, pending regulatory approval.
The Wells notice from the SEC is not a final indication of a lawsuit. Robinhood can respond to the SEC and argue why a civil lawsuit should not proceed. “We’re obviously disappointed about the notice, but we’re going to keep working with the regulator. At the same time, Robinhood Crypto is here to stay,” Kerbrat said. “We feel very good about our offering in the U.S.”
