Robinhood Markets, Inc.
Company History
Robinhood Markets History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 2013 in Menlo Park, California, United States
When was Robinhood Markets founded?
Robinhood Markets was founded in 2013 in Menlo Park, California, United States by Vlad Tenev and Baiju Bhatt, making it 13 years old.
- Founded
- 2013
- Founding place
- Menlo Park, California, United States
- Founders
- Vlad Tenev and Baiju Bhatt
- Headquarters today
- Menlo Park, California
- Milestones documented
- 12 (2013–2026)
- Current CEO
- Vlad Tenev
- Acquisitions
- 5
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Robinhood is founded |
| 2015 | Mobile app launches |
| 2018 | Robinhood Crypto launches |
| 2021 | GameStop restrictions and IPO |
| 2023 | X1 acquisition adds card capability |
| 2024 | Robinhood Gold Card launches |
| 2025 | TradePMR and Bitstamp expand product reach |
| 2025 | Revenue reaches $4.473B |
| 2025 | Joins the S&P 500 |
| 2026 | Q1 revenue of $1.07 billion |
| 2026 | 10% workforce reduction |
| 2026 | Record Q2 revenue of $1.31 billion |
- Where was Robinhood Markets founded?
- Robinhood Markets was founded in Menlo Park, California, United States in 2013.
- Who founded Robinhood Markets?
- Robinhood Markets was founded by Vlad Tenev and Baiju Bhatt.
- When did Robinhood Markets start?
- Robinhood Markets was founded in 2013.
- How old is Robinhood Markets?
- Robinhood Markets is 13 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
Vlad Tenev and Baiju Bhatt met at Stanford and later built trading software for financial firms in New York. They noticed that institutions traded at very low cost while retail investors often paid around $10 per trade. In 2013 they founded Robinhood to offer commission-free trading in a mobile app, built a referral waitlist of roughly one million people, and launched publicly in 2015.
Founders
Vlad Tenev
Vlad Tenev co-founded Robinhood in 2013 and has been sole CEO since November 2020; he is also chairman. He led the company through the January 2021 GameStop trading restrictions, its July 2021 Nasdaq IPO, two rounds of layoffs in 2022, and the move to sustained profitability, with FY2025 net income of $1.883 billion. Vlad Tenev was born in 1987. Education: Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.
Baiju Bhatt
Baiju Bhatt co-founded Robinhood in 2013 and was co-CEO with Vlad Tenev until November 2020, when he became Chief Creative Officer and focused on product and design. He stepped back from that executive role in 2024 to start Aetherflux, a space-based solar power company, while remaining on Robinhood's board. Baiju Prafulkumar Bhatt was born in 1984 or 1985. He was co-chief executive of Robinhood and later founded Cowboy Space Corporation.
Key Milestones
Robinhood is founded
Vlad Tenev and Baiju Bhatt found Robinhood with a mission to democratize access to investing.
Source: sec.govMobile app launches
Robinhood launches commission-free stock trading through a simple mobile brokerage app.
Source: sec.govRobinhood Crypto launches
Robinhood expands into crypto trading, adding a major cyclical revenue driver.
Source: sec.govGameStop restrictions and IPO
Robinhood faces scrutiny during the meme-stock trading episode and later goes public on Nasdaq.
Source: sec.govX1 acquisition adds card capability
Robinhood acquires X1, helping build the Robinhood Gold Card strategy.
Source: sec.govRobinhood Gold Card launches
Robinhood launches the Gold Card, built on technology from its 2023 X1 acquisition.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgTradePMR and Bitstamp expand product reach
Robinhood uses acquisitions to expand advisory infrastructure and crypto exchange capability.
Source: sec.govRevenue reaches $4.473B
Robinhood reports FY2025 total net revenues of $4.473B and net income of $1.883B.
Source: investors.robinhood.comQ1 revenue of $1.07 billion
Robinhood reports Q1 2026 total net revenues of $1.07 billion, up 15%, as crypto revenue falls.
Source: investors.robinhood.com10% workforce reduction
In June 2026 Robinhood cuts about 290 roles to flatten management layers.
Source: cnbc.comRecord Q2 revenue of $1.31 billion
Q2 2026 revenue rises 32% to $1.31 billion, net income reaches $573 million, and funded customers hit 28.4 million.
Source: nasdaq.comMajor Acquisitions
MarketSnacks
2019Robinhood acquired financial newsletter and media company MarketSnacks in 2019 to add editorial content capability, rebranding it as Robinhood Snacks, a daily market-news podcast and newsletter aimed at retail investors who were often new to markets.
Say Technologies
2021Robinhood acquired shareholder-communications platform Say Technologies for $140 million in August 2021, its first acquisition following its own IPO, to give retail investors tools for submitting questions and voting at company earnings calls and annual meetings.
X1
2023Robinhood agreed to acquire credit-card startup X1 for $95 million in June 2023 (with the final closing consideration valued at about $104 million), adding a no-annual-fee rewards credit card built on modern underwriting technology rather than traditional credit-bureau-only scoring.
TradePMR
2025Robinhood agreed in 2024 to buy TradePMR, a custody and portfolio-management platform for registered investment advisers, for about $300 million; the deal closed in February 2025.
Bitstamp
2025Robinhood agreed in June 2024 to buy Bitstamp, a crypto exchange founded in 2011, for about $200 million in cash, and closed the deal in June 2025.
Keep researching Robinhood Markets
Robinhood Markets Company History FAQ
When and where was Robinhood founded?
Robinhood Markets, Inc. was founded on April 18, 2013, in Menlo Park, California, by Stanford University alumni Vladimir Tenev and Baiju Bhatt.
What were the founders doing before founding Robinhood?
After meeting as physics and mathematics students at Stanford, Tenev and Bhatt moved to New York City and built two algorithmic quantitative trading software startups: Celeris (high-frequency trading software) and Chronos Research (market-making algorithms for hedge funds).
What inspired the creation and name of Robinhood?
Inspired by the 2011 Occupy Wall Street protests, the founders realized that large Wall Street institutions paid fractions of a cent to trade stocks, while everyday retail investors were charged $7 to $10 per trade. They chose the name "Robinhood" to symbolize "democratizing finance for all."
How did Robinhood achieve viral growth before launching its app?
In 2013-2014, Robinhood launched a minimalist pre-launch landing page featuring a gamified waitlist. Users could advance their spot in line by referring friends, accumulating nearly 1 million sign-ups before the iOS app officially launched in March 2015.
How did Robinhood force the entire brokerage industry to eliminate commissions?
In October 2019, after Robinhood captured millions of Millennial and Gen Z investors with zero-commission trading, legacy brokerage giants Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, E*TRADE, and Fidelity simultaneously eliminated all trading commissions on U.S. stocks and ETFs to stem client defection.
When did Robinhood launch cryptocurrency trading?
Robinhood launched Robinhood Crypto in February 2018, initially allowing commission-free trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum in select states before rapidly expanding into a full crypto trading and wallet platform.
What happened during the GameStop meme stock short squeeze in January 2021?
On January 28, 2021, amidst unprecedented trading volume in meme stocks like GameStop (GME) and AMC, clearinghouse DTCC hit Robinhood with a sudden $3 billion collateral deposit requirement. To meet capital rules, Robinhood temporarily restricted customer purchases of 13 volatile stocks, sparking massive public outrage and congressional hearings.
How did Robinhood resolve the January 2021 liquidity crunch?
Over a single weekend, Vlad Tenev and his team raised an extraordinary $3.4 billion in emergency convertible debt from existing venture investors (led by Ribbit Capital, Sequoia, and Andreessen Horowitz), successfully satisfying clearinghouse capital mandates without halting general operations.
When did Robinhood go public and what was its IPO performance?
Robinhood went public on the NASDAQ under ticker symbol "HOOD" on July 29, 2021, pricing at $38 per share and raising $2.1 billion at a $32 billion valuation. Robinhood reserved an unprecedented 20% to 25% of its IPO shares directly for retail users through its own app.
What was Robinhood's turnaround strategy following post-IPO declines?
In 2022-2023, facing falling retail trading volumes and tech layoffs, Robinhood executed aggressive cost rationalization, introduced high-yield cash sweep accounts (offering 5% APY on Robinhood Gold), launched retirement IRAs with a 1-3% match, and expanded into the UK and EU crypto markets.
What was the landmark $200 million Bitstamp acquisition announced in 2024?
In June 2024, Robinhood announced an all-cash $200 million agreement to acquire Bitstamp, one of the world's oldest and most respected cryptocurrency exchanges (holding over 50 global regulatory licenses), dramatically expanding Robinhood's institutional and international crypto operations.
When did co-founder Baiju Bhatt step down from executive leadership?
Baiju Bhatt stepped down as Co-CEO in November 2020 (leaving Vlad Tenev as sole CEO), and later stepped down as Chief Creative Officer in March 2024 to launch a space technology venture (Aetherflux), remaining a major shareholder and board director.
Related Companies
Compare Robinhood Markets, Inc. History With Competitors
Related Strategic History
Compare founding milestones and corporate evolution
Explore Robinhood Markets
Core profile pages, founders and related research hubs for this company.