- The CEO of Robinhood Crypto says he is ready to work with any US administration, regardless of who wins the presidential election.
- Institutional adoption has increased the base volume of crypto volume, the executive said.
- Crypto accessibility needs to improve, “it’s very intimidating right now,” he says.
Johann Kerbrat is the Managing Director of Crypto at Robinhood, the trading app used by many US retail investors during the 2020 stock market mania. FXStreet interviewed him at European Blockchain Convention held in Barcelona, where he explained the company’s global expansion plans, while also discussing regulatory issues and the future direction of the crypto space.
Johann Kerbrat. Source: Robinhood
Q: Robinhood was in the middle of the retail frenzy in 2020 and 2021, and it was easy to draw parallels between the meme stock and coin mania. Are you now seeing more mature behavior from traders?
Our crypto team provides access to what customers care about. When listing assets, we have a fairly long framework to ensure that the assets on the platform are secure and that we can operate with them.
The behavior (of traders) has changed. It’s just a different world. At the time, there were no institutions. We now have Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, so it’s a different type of market.
Q: What are the main similarities or differences between the typical stock trader you have on the platform and crypto traders? Is there a lot of crossover between them?
There is some crossover. One of the things people like most about Robinhood in the US is that you can actually switch from stocks to cryptocurrencies and vice versa. In the EU we are only available on the cryptocurrency side, so they have no choice. But people are much more interested in crypto. We have investors who are brand new to crypto, and they will just start moving from one of their stocks to one of the coins and then slowly enter the crypto world.
We are also seeing a progression from simply holding assets to actually transferring them using a wallet and greater use of Web3. That’s what’s most interesting: seeing that people don’t just hold the asset on the platform.
Q: What do you expect from the Bitstamp acquisition? Are you targeting European and Asian markets from a retail trader’s perspective, or is it more of an institutional approach?
It’s a combination of both. The first main reason is global expansion, as Bitstamp holds around 50 licenses across the world and has a globally used exchange, which we didn’t have. Then we have the institutional factor: Bitstamp already has a well-established business with institutions, so this is a huge accelerator for us. So far, we have focused primarily on retail, which will allow us to offer many products for institutions to use.
US regulators should adopt a framework similar to that of MiCA
Q: Regulation is a big topic. We now have MiCA in Europe, and there seems to be a bit more clarity than in the US. How do you see this evolution?
The MiCA framework has many advantages and disadvantages. It’s not perfect, but it has merit and it helps businesses like ours understand what we can offer customers. That’s why we decided to launch into the EU last year. We have encouraged US regulators to adopt a similar framework.
Q: What do you expect from the SEC, with all the testing it has conducted, including a Wells notice to Robinhood?
We were disappointed by Wells’ review. We are a highly regulated business, licensed by the SEC and FINRA. We are regulated by the New York DFS on the crypto side. We are used to working with regulators. It’s just about continuing to work together, and hopefully next year we’ll have more good news for the crypto space.
Q: Do you see a greater chance of reaching a settlement with the SEC or rather going to court?
I can’t talk about details, but the main goal is to discuss it with them. We think we have very strong arguments. We have adopted a position that puts safety first. We have only listed 15 assets in the United States. We have never offered lending or staking. Compared to other exchanges that listed hundreds of assets, we took a position consistent with what they are looking for. When they encouraged us to sign up, we did all the work. What I’m looking forward to seeing is what comes next, we’ll see if we record anything.
Q: Do you think the US elections could provide more clarity? Trump has made his support for cryptocurrency clear and Harris appears to be a little less clear. How do you think the election outcome will influence the SEC and regulation in the United States?
Robinhood has been around for over a decade and we’ve been able to work with different types of administrations, whether Democratic or Republican. My goal is to make sure that we can work no matter which team wins in November. I hope it is clear at this point that we need regulation, otherwise we will fall behind the EU and other countries in Asia.
Q: So do you expect the SEC to at least provide more clarity next year?
I didn’t expect it, I just have hope. I don’t know what the plan is.
Q: Does crypto require Gary Gensler to leave the SEC?
I don’t know what it takes to be SEC chairman, so I wouldn’t say he should go or not. I think we need to achieve clear regulation. This is important no matter who is president.
Better accessibility and lower costs, the keys to greater crypto adoption
Q: Institutional demand for ETFs has been muted compared to huge expectations. Do you expect institutional adoption to pick up, or has it been overestimated?
I have been in crypto for over 10 years. At the time, people said that Bitcoin was something that institutions would never want to touch. We now have over 11 ETFs in the US alone, and you also have ETPs in the EU. For now, it’s more about the markets, because interest rates are also quite high, so there is less need for institutions to be active in the market, but we will see how things develop. You can see that the volume is now higher than before the institutions arrived.
Q: You come from a technology background. In your opinion, what is the main added value that crypto must bring for increased adoption in the years to come?
Accessibility is still lacking. Crypto was created by engineers for engineers, without thinking about the rest of the population. The first time you have to create a wallet or use DeFi, it is very intimidating. I’ve seen people try to do it in front of me, and it’s sad how many steps it takes and how many fees you have to pay.
Next, broader use of blockchain technology. In the stock market, a few months ago we celebrated the development of T+1 settlements, which reduced the settlement cycle to one day. Whereas in crypto, Bitcoin can take much less than 10 minutes to settle. Tokenization of real-world assets, including stocks, could be a game-changer and solve many problems, and make it cheaper for customers by cutting out middlemen. From a trading perspective, this can help retail traders around the world, regardless of the asset they are trading.
Q: Sometimes cryptocurrency trading works in mysterious ways compared to traditional markets. What are the factors that determine price movements?
I think crypto is a very transparent market. It is quite rare to know exactly the circulation of an asset, the market capitalization, what is blocked… You can get a lot of information just by doing a little research on the assets. All of this is actually one of the bonuses of crypto trading. I recommend people do their research. When something is too good to be true, there is a reason for it.
Q: Do you have a one-year Bitcoin price prediction, September 2025?
I generally don’t give prices. If I knew the price of Bitcoin 14 years ago, I wouldn’t be working right now. What’s interesting is that as institutions come into play, we see a lot less volatility. When people talk about the Bitcoin crash, they’re talking about a level that we didn’t even think was possible five or six years ago.
