Robinhood, the retail trading platform that rose from the anti-Wall Street movement, is accelerating its crypto infrastructure push. On Wednesday, the company declared that its Layer 2 blockchain Robinhood Chain has transitioned from testnet to mainnet after roughly four months of testing since February. Built on top of Arbitrum, the chain is positioned as an "AI-native blockchain tailored for real-world assets (RWA)."
Robinhood Earn: DeFi Deposit Product with 7% Yield
Alongside the mainnet launch, Robinhood introduced Robinhood Earn, a decentralized deposit product allowing users to lend USDG stablecoins from self-custody wallets with an estimated annual yield of ~7%. Returns are derived from the interest generated by underlying RWA assets. Robinhood's tokenized equity products are already accessible via its wallet app in over 120 countries. CEO Vlad Tenev stated in January that tokenized stocks are "inevitable," as they can avoid occasional trading halts seen on traditional exchanges.
UK Crypto Trading on the Horizon
The company confirmed it will roll out cryptocurrency trading services in the United Kingdom. This expansion follows its existing crypto offerings in the U.S. and other markets, marking a strategic move beyond its home base.
Mainnet Launch Amid Layoffs and Revenue Dip
The mainnet debut comes against a challenging backdrop. Tenev announced a 10% workforce reduction weeks ago as part of a restructuring. Robinhood's April report showed crypto transaction revenue dropped nearly 50% year-over-year, from $252 million to $134 million. The Q2 earnings report is scheduled for July 29. Despite these headwinds, the market reacted positively; Robinhood's stock rose about 8% following the news.
L2 Competition: Base Remains the Dominant Rival
Robinhood Chain enters a Layer 2 landscape dominated by Coinbase-backed Base, which holds roughly $11 billion in total value locked and ranks as the second-largest L2 network. In June, Base suffered two consecutive outages within hours due to a sequencer bug. Robinhood Chain differentiates by embedding RWA products — tokenized stocks and stablecoin deposits — directly into the ecosystem, creating a closed loop from chain to product to user.