Financial services and future markets trading platform Robinhood Markets has completed a $200 million acquisition of Luxembourg-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp.
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Financial services and future markets trading platform Robinhood Markets has completed a $200 million acquisition of Luxembourg-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp. Completion of the deal, which was agreed in principle in June 2024, is another milestone in Robinhood’s strategy to chase ‘profitable growth,’ driving the company’s stock value up 69% in the past year.
Key Takeaways
- Robinhood officially agreed to acquire cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp for $200 million in cash
- The deal will give Robinhood access to more than 50 institutional investors and over 50,000 retail traders
- With Bitstamp’s 50+ crypto licenses in global jurisdictions across Europe and Asia, Robinhood will now compete with crypto powerhouses like Coinbase and Binance
According to an article published by CNBC, the all-cash deal gives Robinhood access to Bitstamp’s global presence through more than 50 active crypto licenses across Europe and Asia.
It also enhances Robinhood’s position as a service provider to financial institutions, bringing Bitstamp’s customer base on board, which includes over 5,000 and more than 50,000 institutional investors and retail traders, respectively.
Bitstamps was founded in 2011 and is known for its deep trading liquidity, reputable compliance, and sturdy, no-nonsense strategy and product that helped it build a powerful, global network of relationships with institutional partners. It made $95 million in sales from May 1, 2024, to April 30, 2025.
Robinhood’s cryptocurrency division, which launched trading in 2018, took a more flashy approach and helped drive the meme-coin frenzy in 2021. Since then, it has been working to rebrand itself as a serious, established player in the digital financial asset marketplace. Efforts have paid off, as it made revenues of $252 million in the first quarter of 2025.
Johann Kerbrat, Robinhood Crypto General Manager, told CNBC, ″I wouldn’t call it necessarily a pivot. For us, it’s combining the strengths of the two businesses. We are one of the largest retail marketplaces in the U.S.”
When asked about possible synergies, he added, “They [Bitstamp] have products that we don’t have, like order books, crypto as a service, advanced API and lending and staking, and thanks to that, we will be able to get into this space not starting from scratch.”
Market analysts are optimistic about the combined entity’s further growth, given the surge in retail trading and the widespread adoption of cryptocurrency across markets.
Platform integration already started
Robinhood isn’t wasting any time when it comes to monetizing its investment. Bitstamp has been connected to Robinhood Legend, the company’s internal trading system, and Smart Exchange Routing, which makes sure that orders are filled as quickly as possible. These steps are the first toward a full platform consolidation.
The company expects to invest about $65 million in the Bitstamp integration for the rest of 2025, costs which will cover platform engineering, regulatory compliance, customer transition, and other support services.
Global expansion aspirations
“Robinhood is a marketplace. We don’t match orders. And with Bitstamp, we will have a robust product offering that will really allow us to build more on the active trader and advanced trader side of things,” Kerbrat added. “That’s going to be a big step for us and really diversify our crypto business, not just from retail in the U.S. to a global offering.”
Robinhood’s deal with Bitstamp is part of a bigger plan to grow its crypto business worldwide. In a separate deal finalized on May 13, Robinhood agreed to buy the Canadian digital asset company WonderFi for about $179 million. This deal aims is to help the company grow its business in the Canadian cryptocurrency market.
Vladimir Tenev, the CEO of Robinhood, has previously said that tokenizing real-world assets is the next big thing for the company’s crypto arm. During the company’s Q1 2025 earnings call, Tenev said that tokenized private equities were a big chance to improve secondary markets and make them more accessible for both investors and issuers.
