American online trading platform Robinhood Markets (DE:7KY) (NASDAQ:HOOD) is spreading its wings across the European Union (EU) and the U.K. with multiple expansion plans. Effective today, Robinhood is launching commission-free cryptocurrency trading in the EU. The app will allow EU customers to trade in 25 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC-USD), Ether (ETH-USD), and Solana (SOL-USD).
The news comes a week after Robinhood announced that it is launching its stock trading platform in the U.K. in early 2024. 7KY stock gained 6.8% in regular trading on December 6 and is trending higher at the time of writing.
HOOD’s Crypto Trading Comes with Benefits
To bolster registrations on its platform, Robinhood is offering up to 1 BTC free for successful registrations and referrals. Not just that, EU customers can earn a percentage of their total volume traded every month in BTC coins back into their accounts. The news was shared by Robinhood’s Crypto general manager Johann Kerbrat during a Bloomberg interview.
Robinhood’s decision to enter the EU market with crypto trading was based on the EU’s strong regulations and policies for crypto assets. The Robinhood crypto app is available across all eligible iOS and Android customers in the EU.
British Customers Can Trade U.S. Stocks 24 Hours
Although Robinhood’s stock trading platform will be available for all in the U.K. next year, interested customers can join the waitlist and benefit from the app’s early access rollout soon. The platform will allow British customers to trade over 6,000 American-listed stocks, including big tech stocks, 24 hours a day, five days a week. The firm aims to roll out the trading of British stocks later once the initial launch is done successfully. Also, customers will not be able to trade options or derivatives in the initial stages.
Importantly, customers’ cash will be shielded by insurance from the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Commission. British customers will be able to earn a 5% annual yield on the cash held. This is Robinhood’s third attempt to expand into the U.K. market. The earlier two attempts hit a snag because of regulatory hurdles and burgeoning domestic demand. Even so, CEO Vlad Tenev is confident that this attempt will be successful.
Is Robinhood Stock a Good Investment?
On TipRanks, 7KY stock has a Hold consensus rating based on two Buys, eight Holds, and three Sell ratings. The Robinhood Markets share price target of €10.73 implies 3.1% upside potential from current levels. Year to date, Robinhood shares have gained 38.4%.
