Retail investment platform Robin Hood announced on Tuesday that it is offering European customers the ability to transfer cryptocurrencies to and from its app, expanding its product capabilities in the region while continuing its international expansion.
In a blog post published on Tuesday, the company announced that it will allow customers in the European Union to deposit and withdraw more than 20 digital currencies through its platform, including bitcoin, ethereum, solana and coin in USD.
The move effectively gives European Robinhood users the ability to “self-custody” their assets, meaning that rather than entrusting your cryptocurrency to a third-party platform, you can take ownership of it in a wallet in exclusive property that contains your funds.
In December last year, Robinhood launched its cryptocurrency trading service, Robinhood Crypto, in the EU for the first time. The service allowed users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies, but not move them from the platform, nor to another third-party platform, nor to their own self-custodial wallet.
Johann Kerbrat, chief executive of Robinhood’s crypto unit, told CNBC that he believes the EU has the potential to become an attractive market for digital currencies, thanks to the crypto-friendly regulations adopted by the bloc.
“The EU can become a very attractive market next year,” Kerbrat said in an interview. He highlighted the EU’s landmark Markets in Crypto-Asset Regulation (MiCA), which establishes harmonized rules for the crypto sector across the bloc’s 27 member states.
Once MiCA is fully in place, Kerbrat said, all EU countries will fall under the same unified regime.
“In terms of total addressable market, (the EU) is as big as the United States,” he told CNBC, adding: “It’s definitely an interesting market for us.”
Robinhood added that, for a limited time, the company will offer European customers the opportunity to get back 1% of the value of tokens deposited on its platform in the form of the equivalent cryptocurrency they transfer into Robinhood.
Robinhood is rolling out new features in the EU at a time when US crypto companies are feuding with national regulators. In the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission has sued several companies, including Coinbase, Binance and Ripple, claiming they all traded unregistered securities.
Each of the platforms disputed the SEC’s allegations, stating that tokens traded and sold on their platforms are not considered securities required to be registered with the agency.
“We’re disappointed by the way the U.S. regulations are enforced, where it’s essentially regulation by enforcement,” Kerbret told CNBC. “We’re not very happy to see this.”
Robinhood is federally regulated by the SEC and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in the United States. It also holds a BitLicense with the New York State Department of Financial Services.
Bitstamp Offer
In June, Robinhood announced the acquisition of Luxembourg-based crypto platform Bitstamp to take advantage of the company’s trading technology and further expand its reach globally. The transaction, valued at approximately $200 million in cash, is expected to close in the first half of 2025.
Kerbrat said the company’s deal to buy Bitstamp would help it access even more international markets and secure coveted regulatory approvals around the world. Bitstamp holds over 50 licenses and registrations worldwide, including Singapore, UK and EU.
Beyond its global expansion, the deal with Bitstamp should also help Robinhood diversify its crypto business to serve more institutional investors, Kerbrat told CNBC. For example, Bitstamp offers a “crypto-as-a-service” offering that helps banks and other financial companies launch their own crypto capabilities.
Robinhood’s cryptocurrency trading, deposit, and withdrawal features are currently only available to customers in the European Union, not the United Kingdom. The company launched its stock trading service popular with Brits in November last year. However, it does not yet offer crypto services to UK customers.
