Robinhood has started rolling out cryptocurrency trading to eligible customers in the UK, adding digital assets to its main investing app through Bitstamp, the exchange it bought for $200 million last year. The launch gives UK users access to more than 50 tokens within the same application that already offers products such as stocks and shares ISAs, equities, options and futures.
The company said the rollout begins this week. Robinhood is launching the service with zero trading fees, no account maintenance fees and no custody fees, although customers will pay a 0.1% foreign exchange charge that increases to 0.3% for certain weekend conversions.
More than 50 assets available
The new UK crypto offering allows customers to buy and sell over 50 digital assets directly inside Robinhood’s main app. Named assets include bitcoin, ether, XRP and HYPE, with the expansion folding crypto into Robinhood’s broader investing product set rather than placing it in a separate service.
Robinhood framed the launch as part of its effort to build an all-in-one investment platform for the UK market. The company said a new wave of UK investors views digital assets as an important element of a diversified portfolio.
Bitstamp handles the trading service
Trading is being provided through Bitstamp UK Ltd, the local arm of the exchange Robinhood acquired last year for $200 million. That deal now underpins Robinhood’s entry of crypto trading into its main UK app.
Bitstamp UK Ltd is registered with the UK Financial Conduct Authority as a crypto asset service provider. Robinhood also noted that crypto holdings through Bitstamp UK are not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme and are not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Pricing and disclosures
At launch, Robinhood is offering crypto trading without trading commissions, custody fees or account maintenance charges. The main additional cost disclosed for UK customers is the foreign exchange fee applied to conversions.
That FX fee is set at 0.1% in standard cases and rises to 0.3% for some weekend conversions. The company did not describe any broader change to the regulatory treatment of crypto assets in the UK, and the product disclosures underscore that customer protections differ from those attached to some traditional financial services.
AI tools and broader crypto push
Alongside the trading rollout, Robinhood is introducing Robinhood Cortex Digests for Crypto in the UK. The company describes the tool as an AI-powered feature that reviews breaking news, market data and Robinhood’s own insights to explain price moves and provide market context.
The UK launch also sits within Robinhood’s wider digital asset strategy. That includes Robinhood Chain, its Arbitrum-based Layer 2 blockchain, which the company says is designed for global development and institutional standards.
What comes next
For now, the confirmed next step is the ongoing rollout to eligible UK customers starting this week. Robinhood’s latest move follows a broader effort to diversify beyond trading, which the company has paired with recently reported second-quarter crypto and revenue figures.
The immediate significance of the launch is practical rather than speculative: Robinhood is extending its UK app so users can access crypto alongside its existing investment products, while relying on the Bitstamp business it acquired last year to provide the trading infrastructure.
Source: www.theblock.co