Robinhood Crypto is set to launch for residents of New York State Thursday.
The New York launch comes five months after Robinhood, which was initially founded as a free consumer stock-trading app, received a virtual currency activities license (aka the BitLicense) and a money transmitter license from New York State.
“We’ve introduced millions of people to equity investing on Robinhood, and want to do the same for everyone interested in crypto, so launching in New York is a crucial next step,” Josh Elman, VP of product, told Cheddar by email Wednesday.
Robinhood has been adamant about its plans to “democratize access to the American financial system” — something of a chorus among fintech startups. Operating in New York is obviously an integral part of achieving mainstream and institutional adoption, with 20 million consumers and the largest financial hub in the world.
Historically, New York regulators have been more rigorous in their approach to cryptocurrency businesses than other states, an unpopular approach among many in the crypto industry. But industry leaders, including Robinhood, Square, Circle, and Coinbase and others, hope that by complying with New York’s requirements, they can bring crypto closer to the incumbent financial system. New York has granted BitLicences to 18 companies since introducing the license in 2015.
When Robinhood first introduced its zero-commission cryptocurrency trading service in January 2018 it became something of a gateway drug for users who would then move on to other Robinhood products like equities and options.
“We heard from lots of our customers that they want crypto to be a part of their investment strategy,” Elman said.
Robinhood Crypto customers can currently invest in Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin SV, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Litecoin, Dogecoin on Robinhood Crypto and track price movements and news for 10 other crypto assets.
The fintech startup is valued at $5.6 billion, after its last funding round which closed in March 2018. Robinhood has raised $539 million in capital to date and last fall revealed it’s preparing for an eventual IPO.
The company now boasts six million users in the U.S. and availability across 39 states, compared to four million users in 16 states this time last year.
An independent watchdog within the IRS reports that while taxpayer services have vastly improved, the agency is still too slow to resolve identity theft cases. And National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins says those delays are “unconscionable.” Erin M. Collins said in the report released Wednesday that overall the 2024 filing season went smoothly, though IRS delays in resolving identity theft victim assistance cases are worsening. It took nearly 19 months to resolve self-reported identity theft cases as of January, and Wednesday's report states that now it takes 22 months to resolve these cases.
Amazon.com Inc. surpassed $2 trillion in market value for the first time in afternoon trading on Wednesday. The push higher for Amazon’s stock market valuation comes a little more than a week after Nvidia hit $3 trillion and briefly became the most valuable company on Wall Street. Nvidia’s chips are used to power many AI application and its valuation has soared as a result. Amazon has also been making big investments in AI as global interest has grown in the technology. Most of the company’s focus has been on business-focused products.
Climate change doesn’t just mean more extreme weather – it also leads to billions of dollars in lost productivity, tourism, and stresses infrastructure.
It’s an annual tradition: the Fed’s banking ‘stress test.’ A year after the regional banking crisis, there are good reasons to make sure they’re prepped.
Summer is upon us, which means weddings, trips overseas, and trips to see Taylor Swift. Avoid a “Cruel Summer” with these budget-friendly tips and tricks.
While Nvidia's meteoric rise led it to briefly dethrone Microsoft as the world's biggest public company, there's a lot more going on in this market than A.I.
