Robinhood’s $200 million Bitstamp deal takes it beyond retail trading

Robin officially closed its acquisition of $ 200 million Amplificationbringing one of the oldest in the world cryptocurrency Exchange in his fold and signaling a strategic change beyond the retail trade and the world of institutions.

The agreement on all cases, announced for the first time last year, gives Robinhood an immediate international footprint – including more than 50 licensed licenses active through Europe, the United Kingdom and Asia – as well as an established institutional clientele, which the retail trade application has been lacking for a long time.

For Robinhood, the agreement marks a passage in deeper waters: institutional cryptography flows, loan and puncture infrastructure, and crypto-as-a service “white built for hedge funds, finches and recorded placement advisers-which all require robust systems for the guard, prices and colony.

“”I would not necessarily call this a pivot, “CNBC, director general of Robinhood Crypto, director general of Robinhood, told CNBC.” For us, it combines the forces of two companies. We are one of the largest retail markets in the United States … They have products that we do not have, such as order books, crypto as a service, advanced API and loans and stimulus, and thanks to this, we will be able to get into this space not to start from scratch. “”

Robinhood, who launched Crypto Trading in 2018 and helped stimulate the 2021 manner of the 2021, has worked in recent months to rename himself as a serious player in the next digital asset financing phase – increasingly defined by regulations, institutional capital and cross -competition.

“Now that we are starting to see the regulatory clarity from Congress and Administration, more and more institutions will want to enter the crypto,” said Kerbrat.

The bitstamp agreement gives it one step ahead.

Founded in 2011, Bitstamp is known for its deep liquidity, its conforming reputation and its minimalist approach. Although it is not flashy, Bitstamp has resisted several market cycles and established long -standing relations with institutional partners through Europe and Asia – something that Robinhood plans to take advantage.

Earlier this monthRobinhood has also acquired The Canadian Wonderfi Crypti Company is drawing from the established user base in Canada.

“Robinhood is a market. We do not match orders. And with Bitstamp, we will have a robust product offer that will really allow us to build more on the active merchant and advanced business,” said Kerbrat.

“It will be a big step for us and really diversify our cryptography company, not just retail in the United States-to a global offer,” he said.

It also gives Robinhood a regulatory ramp in Europe, where crypto rules are clearer compared to the fragmented approach in the United States

The company has confirmed that it would maintain existing Bitstamp interfaces and operations for the moment, while exploring deeper integration over time. Bitstamp is already used behind the scenes for the routing of intelligent orders via the institutional web platform of Robinhood, Robinhood Ledger.

“The flow we send to Bitstamp will make Bitstamp more alive – and attract more institutions,” said Kerbrat.

The acquisition ends at a critical moment for Robinhood.

The Fintech player continued to develop aggressively, in particular by scoring new tokens, launchand tease international deployments of products. Bitstamp regulatory history and the license portfolio can provide a measurement of insulation because Robinhood pushes further in the new international markets.

Kerbrat said he does not exclude the possibility of other acquisitions.

“If we can find a way to accelerate at least 18 months or two years – and we have a lot of good reasons to believe that it is a great acquisition – this is something that we will certainly look at,” he said.