Despite a market comedown from the previous quarter, Robinhood’s cryptocurrency trading business delivered its second-strongest revenue performance in years during Q1 2025, according to the company’s CEO.
The financial services platform reported a 50% year-over-year increase in total net revenues, reaching $927 million, while net income surged by 114% compared to the same period last year.
Though adjusted EBITDA fell short of analyst expectations, Robinhood’s diversification strategy appears to be paying dividends.
The company now boasts nine separate business lines generating over $100 million in revenue each, with several more approaching that milestone.
“We’re diversifying away from volatile crypto revenue,” explained Robinhood’s CEO, who highlighted sports as an “incredibly powerful” new avenue for growth.
Yet despite this pivot, cryptocurrency trading remains a cornerstone of Robinhood’s business model.
The company faces intensifying competition, with reports that Morgan Stanley plans to bring cryptocurrency trading to E*Trade.
Robinhood executives remain unfazed, emphasizing their experience in the crypto space as a competitive advantage.
Looking beyond immediate business concerns, Robinhood’s CEO shared a broader vision for blockchain technology revolutionizing financial markets.
“The traditional stock market is like a restaurant that closes at 4pm—while crypto is the 24-hour diner that never turns customers away,” the CEO quipped when comparing trading hours.
This always-open nature is just one advantage the CEO sees in crypto infrastructure.
Blockchain technology could potentially make markets more accessible, cost-efficient, and resilient by reducing settlement times and transaction costs.
The platform’s growing focus on cryptocurrency aligns with the broader DeFi movement that seeks to create financial services outside traditional banking systems.
Robinhood plans to showcase new cryptocurrency features at an upcoming event, promising that they have “a lot of things coming down the pike” for crypto traders.
While regulatory uncertainty remains a significant barrier to integrating blockchain into traditional finance, the company maintains its position that cryptocurrency trading represents the future of financial markets—a future they intend to lead.
The strategic direction comes directly from Vlad Tenev as CEO, who co-founded the company with Baiju Bhatt in 2013.
