Robinhood rolls out crypto trading in UK with more than 50 assets

Robinhood has begun offering cryptocurrency trading to eligible UK customers, giving users access to more than 50 digital assets through Bitstamp inside its main investing app.

According to a Bloomberg report, the rollout starts this week and brings crypto trading alongside Robinhood’s existing UK products, which include equities, stocks and shares ISAs, options and futures.

Customers can buy and sell assets including Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP and HYPE, with the trades handled by Bitstamp UK Ltd. Robinhood acquired the long-running crypto exchange for $200 million last year and has since used the business to support parts of its international crypto expansion.

The UK service carries no trading, custody or account maintenance fees, Robinhood said. Customers will instead pay a 0.1% foreign exchange fee when converting currencies, while certain conversions made during weekends will carry a 0.3% fee.

Robinhood crypto trading starts after FCA registration

The launch follows regulatory approval secured shortly before the product rollout. Robinhood’s UK subsidiary was added to the Financial Conduct Authority’s register of cryptoasset firms on July 31, clearing a regulatory requirement for providing cryptocurrency services in the country.

Under the existing UK system, crypto firms must register with the FCA and comply with anti-money laundering requirements before offering covered services. Robinhood had previously disclosed during its July 29 second-quarter earnings report that it planned to introduce crypto products in the UK but did not provide a launch date at the time.

Crypto trading is being provided through Bitstamp UK Ltd, which is registered with the FCA as a cryptoasset service provider. Robinhood warned that cryptocurrencies held through Bitstamp UK are not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme or covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Jordan Sinclair, president of Robinhood UK Ltd and general manager of Bitstamp UK Ltd, said the company sees digital assets becoming an important part of investment portfolios among a new group of UK investors.

“With today’s launch, we’re taking another major step toward becoming the all-in-one investment platform for the UK,” Sinclair said.

Robinhood enters the market before another regulatory change scheduled for the UK crypto sector. Applications under the country’s incoming crypto authorization framework are expected to open at the end of September and remain available until the end of February 2027, with the full regime scheduled to take effect in October 2027.

The FCA registration obtained under the current anti-money laundering framework does not replace authorization under the incoming system. Companies seeking to continue providing covered crypto services after the transition will need to meet the requirements of the new regime.

Cortex adds AI analysis to Robinhood’s UK crypto service

Alongside trading, Robinhood is introducing Cortex Digests for Crypto to UK customers as part of the rollout.

The generative AI feature processes breaking news, technical indicators, market information and Robinhood’s proprietary data to provide explanations for price movements in individual cryptocurrencies. According to the company, the tool is designed to give investors additional market context when evaluating digital assets.

Adding the feature extends Robinhood Cortex into a crypto service that now sits inside the same application as the company’s other UK investment products.

The launch also connects UK customers to a crypto business that has expanded beyond buying and selling tokens. Robinhood has been developing its own blockchain infrastructure through Robinhood Chain, a permissionless Layer 2 network built using Arbitrum technology.

According to company figures, Robinhood Chain has recorded more than $18 billion in decentralized exchange trading volume and more than $840 million in total value locked since launching on July 1.

Developers worldwide, including those in the UK, can build applications on the network. Robinhood has described the blockchain as infrastructure developed to institutional standards.

During the company’s latest earnings period, CEO Vlad Tenev said Robinhood Chain had become the fastest Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible blockchain to reach 100 million transactions.

Crypto revenue fell as Robinhood expanded other businesses

The UK rollout comes after Robinhood reported lower cryptocurrency transaction revenue during the second quarter despite expanding its digital asset products.

Crypto transaction revenue fell 38% from a year earlier to $100 million in the quarter ended June 30, according to financial results released on July 29.

Other parts of Robinhood’s trading business recorded stronger growth. Prediction markets generated $156 million during the quarter, exceeding crypto transaction revenue for the first time.

Total net revenue increased 32% year over year to $1.31 billion, while net income rose 48% to $573 million compared with the second quarter of 2025.

During the same period, Robinhood launched Robinhood Chain, expanded its Stock Tokens product to more than 120 countries, introduced Robinhood Earn and completed its acquisition of Canadian crypto platform WonderFi.

Prediction markets have also become a larger part of the company’s product lineup. The Wall Street Journal reported in July that Robinhood had discussed adding event contracts from Crypto.com to its prediction markets hub, although neither company confirmed an agreement.

Robinhood already distributes contracts through Kalshi and ForecastEx, while it also operates Rothera through a joint venture with Susquehanna International Group.

Robinhood has continued adding products outside crypto

Days before launching UK crypto trading, Robinhood also filed to raise as much as $200 million for its second publicly listed venture fund.

Regulatory filings showed Robinhood Ventures Fund II plans to offer 7.6 million shares at $25 each, with Robinhood separately selling another 400,000 shares. Subject to regulatory approval, the fund is expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker RVII on Aug. 13.

Unlike Robinhood Ventures Fund I, which concentrated on later-stage private companies including OpenAI, Stripe, SpaceX and Databricks, RVII is structured mainly around earlier-stage businesses.

The fund is expected to begin with investments in about 80 private companies and will primarily target seed-stage businesses connected to Y Combinator, including companies founded by current or former accelerator participants and YC alumni.

Robinhood Ventures head Sarah Pinto said the structure is intended to give retail investors access to companies earlier in their development rather than requiring them to wait until an initial public offering.

RVII also introduces fees that were not part of Robinhood’s first venture fund. Regulatory disclosures show investors will pay a 2% annual management fee and a 20% incentive fee on realized gains, while the prospectus warns that shareholders will not have redemption rights before liquidation.

The subscription period is scheduled to close on Aug. 12, according to the filing, with Goldman Sachs serving as lead bookrunner and Citigroup, JPMorgan, UBS and Wells Fargo acting as joint bookrunners.