Robinhood is reportedly engaged on blockchain infrastructure that can allow European retail buyers to commerce US securities, Bloomberg Information reported on Could 7.
In line with the report, the brokerage platform is exploring a partnership with a digital asset agency to help the initiative and is contemplating Arbitrum and Solana as potential blockchain layers.
Individuals with direct data of the undertaking stated that discussions stay ongoing and that no ultimate choice has been made relating to the expertise associate or launch timeline.
A spokesperson for Robinhood declined to touch upon the matter. Representatives from Offchain Labs, the developer of Arbitrum, and the Solana Basis additionally didn’t reply to inquiries.
The plan would develop Robinhood’s European choices past crypto buying and selling, representing the total scope of its providers within the European Union.
In April, Robinhood obtained a brokerage license in Lithuania, authorizing it to supply inventory buying and selling and funding providers throughout the bloc.
The corporate additionally signed an settlement to amass crypto change Bitstamp, a deal nonetheless pending finalization. The acquisition would give Robinhood entry to Bitstamp’s MiFID-licensed multilateral buying and selling facility, opening the door to crypto-linked derivatives within the area.
Blockchain infrastructure for securities buying and selling
The infrastructure beneath improvement would tokenize US equities, permitting them to be represented on a public blockchain and traded by European customers.
Whereas the strategy remains to be in formation, such a system would supply the potential advantages of near-instant settlement, value reductions, and transparency throughout a commerce’s lifecycle.
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev has beforehand expressed help for tokenized securities. In February, Tenev acknowledged in a letter to buyers that he believes that tokenized non-public firm shares resonate finest with US buyers.
By constructing a blockchain-based framework for cross-border securities buying and selling, Robinhood can be positioning itself to compete in a phase that merges conventional equities with digital asset infrastructure.
The selection between Arbitrum and Solana would affect community traits resembling throughput, charges, good contract capabilities, and compatibility with the Ethereum Digital Machine (EVM).
