Introduction: Going from Crypto Only to All-in-One Investment Platform
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev made a public announcement that the company was developing a blockchain called the Robinhood Chain with military-grade security for tokenization of real-world assets. In a Bloomberg interview, he emphasized the need for a system that is fast, low-cost, and ultra-secure. As the platform rolls out, it transitions its European app from purely crypto-focused to a comprehensive investment hub powered by blockchain.
Tokenized Stocks and ETFs: A European Launchpad
More than 200 tokenized U.S. stocks and ETFs have already been made available to European Union clients of Robinhood. These tokens, which are hosted on the Layer 2 network Arbitrum, enable investors to trade premium stocks like Apple, Nvidia, and Microsoft without paying commissions and at any time during the week. Tokens for private businesses like OpenAI and SpaceX are among them; this innovation provides retail investors with previously unheard-of access to private-market value. Robinhood maintains custody of the underlying shares, but token holders do not have voting rights. Dividend entitlements are included.
The Robinhood Chain: Building the Future Infrastructure
While the initial tokenization stage rests on Arbitrum, Robinhood plans to migrate trading to its own Layer-2 blockchain later this year or early 2026. This chain, also based on the Arbitrum framework, is engineered to support 24/7 trading, self-custody, and cross-chain interoperability. Tenev noted that existing blockchains lacked the necessary combination of security, speed, and cost-efficiency required for RWAs—in short, they weren’t “military grade.”
Complementary Crypto Offerings: Enhancing the Ecosystem
The European rollout also introduced perpetual futures on cryptocurrencies, allowing up to 3x leverage for qualified traders, with orders executed through Bitstamp—recently acquired by Robinhood. At the same time, U.S. users can also now stake assets to earn rewards for contributing to networks like Ethereum and Solana. This enhancement offers Robinhood aspects not only to traditional investors, but also to crypto investors.
Market Impact: Surging Shares and Analyst Optimism
Robinhood’s launch triggered a double-digit stock surge, jumping around 12–13% and hitting new highs, driven by enthusiasm for its EU tokenized stock rollout. Analysts at Mizuho, Cantor Fitzgerald, KeyBanc and Deutsche Bank have upgraded their price targets upward, some to as high as $110 by calling Robinhood a “must own stock” in the crypto space. Year-to-date in 2025, Robinhood shares are up nearly 150–163%, which has outperformed the S&P 500 handily.
Regulatory and Technical Challenges Ahead
Even with this progress, Robinhood has two important challenges on the horizon: regulatory clarity and technical execution. In many markets, especially the U.S., laws around tokenized securities are murky, so they will need to continue working with regulators before they can start the wider rollout. From a technical perspective, making sure the Robinhood Chain can achieve proper military-grade security with a significant number of transactions is not a simple challenge. Tenev recognizes that the chain needs to provide speed, cost, and resiliency – things that blockchains can’t reliably do right now.
What the Future Holds: A Crypto-Enabled Financial Ecosystem
Robinhood’s aspirations extend well beyond trading stocks and exchange-traded-funds: they want to tokenize parts of the economy, including a variety of asset classes ranging from real estate and private equity to many more. Robinhood wants to join decentralized finance to traditional markets, in an easy to use and transparent way, that is accessible to the globe. If the Robinhood Chain finally works out, it will change the ways assets are bought, sold and managed— ushering in a era of borderless, always-on investing.
Conclusion: A Pioneering Step with Caveats
Robinhood has made a daring leap into the development of a blockchain environment for real-world assets. The launch in Europe serves as a proof of concept for robust market reactions, but it will be timing and regulatory approval if this first step can progress to a global financial infrastructure. For now, Robinhood appears to be on an agile path to building the rails of investment in the future.
