Robinhood is doubling down on crypto offerings. The trading app will launch staking for Ethereum and Solana in New York starting on Tuesday, according to the company, allowing customers to earn yield on cryptocurrency.
The company will let customers stake in New York and plans to expand across the country. “We’re proud of the momentum we’ve seen with staking and especially excited that staking is now available to customers in New York, which has one of the most rigorous regulatory frameworks in the country,” wrote Johann Kerbrat, senior vice president and general manager of Robinhood Crypto, in a note to Fortune.
Staking has been part of the crypto universe for nearly a decade, rewarding users who lock up a stash of tokens in order to help operate a blockchain network. But uncertainty over its legal status has meant it has been mostly experienced crypto users who have engaged in it using their own wallets.
In 2023, the exchange Kraken agreed to pay $30 million to settle allegations that it broke the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules by offering staking. Robinhood’s launching of crypto stakes reflects a looser regulatory environment under President Donald Trump’s administration.
“These crypto enhancements are strategic chess moves positioning Robinhood for the anticipated transformation of financial infrastructure through blockchain technology and tokenization—particularly with the regulatory clarity we expect under the current administration,” said Caydee Blankenship, senior equity research analyst at CFRA Research.
Robinhood also announced a push into global crypto markets. In Europe, it will add perpetual futures contracts on several coins, and it will also enter the Indonesian market, as it agreed to buy a brokerage and crypto platform in the country.
Robinhood is not new to crypto, as users on the platform have been able to trade Bitcoin and Ethereum since 2018. However, the company has beefed up its crypto arm this year. In June, Robinhood completed a $200 million acquisition of Bitstamp, the world’s longest-running crypto exchange. Crypto transactions accounted for more than 21% of the company’s revenue, as of last month’s earnings report.
Robinhood’s expansion of their digital assets could help them challenge other crypto exchanges, according to Romeo Alvarez, research analyst at William O’Neil. “Robinhood is stepping up its efforts to compete on a global basis with larger trading platforms like Coinbase, Binance, OKX, and Kraken,” he said.
The last few days have seen other big banks vie for staking. On Friday, BlackRock filed for a stake Ethereum ETF, the iShares Ethereum Staking Trust (ETHB). The Wall Street giant already has an Ethereum ETF (ETHA), but that one does not have staking components.
