Robinhood enters the tokenization stock market, teaming up with Arbitrum to develop a dedicated Blockchain

Robinhood officially announced the launch of tokenized stock trading services, covering over 200 US stocks and ETFs, and developed a dedicated Layer2 chain for physical asset (RWA) based on a well-known blockchain technology. This news propelled Robinhood's stock price to soar over 12.7%, reaching a historic high.

Robinhood has announced the provision of tokenized trading services for US stocks to EU users, currently supporting over 200 US stock assets for on-chain trading 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. This product only charges a 0.1% foreign exchange conversion fee, aimed at reducing the cost for European investors to enter the US market. In the future, users will be able to achieve self-custody of tokenized stocks and ETFs through Robinhood's crypto wallet.

In addition, Robinhood is also developing its own Layer 2 Blockchain specifically designed for RWA, tentatively named Robinhood Chain. The design of this chain began several years ago, architected around RWA, with the goal of breaking the limitations of traditional finance and achieving a more open and transparent asset trading experience.

To advance this business layout, Robinhood has obtained a brokerage license in Lithuania this year and acquired an established cryptocurrency exchange for $200 million, consolidating its technological and compliance foundation in the European market.

Robinhood has also launched a series of cryptocurrency asset features, including crypto perpetual contracts with up to 3x leverage for European users, and the ability for U.S. users to stake ETH and SOL in compliant areas. Additionally, a credit card that supports crypto cashback, a personalized AI assistant, a temporary 1% reward for crypto deposits, and the introduction of a "tax lot" feature will also be launched.

Recently, multiple cryptocurrency institutions have made the tokenization of securities a key focus for strategic expansion. A well-known exchange has allowed non-U.S. customers to trade stocks in token form; another large exchange is seeking regulatory approval to launch tokenized stock services; and yet another exchange has announced a partnership to provide tokenized stock trading services for EU users.

For traditional brokerages, securities tokenization is gradually changing the traditional landscape due to its low barriers to entry, flexibility, and combinability. Robinhood, which started as a platform for retail securities trading, has also begun to diversify into the crypto business in recent years, achieving good results. In the first quarter of this year, Robinhood's total revenue grew by 50% year-on-year, with revenue from the crypto business doubling to $252 million.

The CEO of Robinhood publicly expressed support for the tokenization of securities, believing that it will initiate the most inclusive investment revolution since stock trading moved from the trading floor to electronic platforms. He pointed out that cryptocurrency technology provides a fairer, more flexible financial system that meets the needs of the 21st century, allowing for the flexible division and distribution of ownership.

However, there are currently no clear guidelines from U.S. regulators on how to legally issue and trade tokenized securities on cryptocurrency platforms. In contrast, regions such as the EU, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi have established complete regulatory frameworks that support the issuance of security tokens and digital exchanges.

To this end, Robinhood submitted a policy proposal to U.S. regulators, calling for the establishment of the world's first federal regulatory framework for RWA tokenization, and revealed plans to build an RWA trading platform based on certain well-known blockchains. This initiative aims to promote regulatory reform for security tokenization and create a more favorable environment for industry development.