Robinhood Chain Takes on NYSE/Nasdaq | Robinhood Crypto GM Johann Kerbrat

What It Covers

Robinhood launches its public testnet for Robinhood Chain, an Ethereum layer two designed for tokenized equities and financial applications. GM Johann Kerbrat explains how this permissionless blockchain competes with NYSE and Nasdaq tokenization strategies, discusses stock token expansion beyond the EU, and reveals strategic investments in Talos and Lighter to build institutional crypto infrastructure.

Key Questions Answered

• •Open Permissionless Architecture: Robinhood Chain launches as an Arbitrum-based Ethereum layer two with permissionless access, contrasting with closed NYSE and Nasdaq blockchain systems. Developers can build any application, though Robinhood will certify apps meeting compliance standards for integration into Robinhood's 26 million user distribution network. This creates competitive advantage for certified applications while maintaining blockchain openness and allowing private key export.
• •Stock Token Liquidity Strategy: Robinhood addresses on-chain equity liquidity constraints through multi-phase rollout and order routing technology. Phase one launched 2,000 non-transferable stock tokens in EU markets. Phase two enables on-chain transfers with routing systems connecting multiple market makers and exchanges simultaneously, mirroring their crypto trading approach that delivers lowest average costs by selecting best prices across liquidity sources in real-time.
• •Institutional Infrastructure Play: Strategic investments in Talos ($1.5B valuation) and Lighter ($1.5B valuation) extend Robinhood's reach beyond retail. Talos provides white-label crypto connectivity for traditional brokerages like Charles Schwab to access Bitstamp liquidity, directly competing with Coinbase's institutional strategy. This positions Robinhood as both retail platform and institutional infrastructure provider, leveraging Bitstamp's fifteen-year institutional trust and deep order books.
• •Regulatory Arbitrage Execution: Stock tokens currently serve EU customers under MICA framework with twenty-four-seven trading on Arbitrum, bypassing US regulatory uncertainty. Robinhood maintains fifty-plus licenses across jurisdictions including SEC registration, CFTC FCM status, and New York BitLicense. The Clarity Act would eliminate state-by-state fragmentation, enabling unified US product offerings and ending situations where customers lose access after relocating to restrictive states.
• •Perpetuals Market Expansion: Robinhood offers equity perpetuals with seven-times leverage in EU markets through simplified UI with visual stop-loss and take-profit controls. US perpetuals remain blocked by CFTC restrictions on non-expiring contracts, pushing volume to offshore exchanges. New CFTC leadership creates potential regulatory pathway, though timeline remains uncertain. Robinhood invested in Lighter's zero-knowledge perpetuals exchange as decentralized complement to centralized offerings.