Robinhood’s tokenized stocks hit a rights gap as ‘serious assets’ demand rulebook clarity

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev said on Tuesday that uncertainty over the longevity of US tokenization rules could deter investors from committing substantial assets to tokenized markets, despite the SEC opening a temporary path for onchain stock trading this year. Speaking during Robinhood’s third-quarter earnings call, Tenev welcomed the SEC’s innovation exemption but said further rulemaking or legislation would be needed to provide longer-term regulatory certainty. “As far as the innovation exemption goes, I think it’s a really positive step... I do think more needs to be done to give people a little bit of certainty because as we talk to customers, I think the uncertainty of what happens in five years is likely to be an impediment to, like, putting serious assets onto this technology.”

Tokenized stock offerings have faced resistance from traditional issuers. Microsoft, Alphabet and Goldman Sachs were among 16 companies that objected to their shares being offered on the proposed OKXICE venue, while AMC CEO Adam Aron separately criticized Robinhood’s tokenized stock products. The SEC has also flagged tokenization as a high-risk area in 2027 market examinations. Binance Research projects that the tokenized equities market could grow to $349 billion by 2030 under its base-case scenario, from $4.43 billion as of Sept. 15.

Asked about private-company stock tokens, Tenev said Robinhood intends to launch those products overseas, subject to regulatory arrangements. In the US, he said the company is working to find a path that satisfies current accreditation constraints. “So I still think some rule-making or legislation is going to be necessary, even though, of course, it’s a positive step, and we hope to have more to share on our own US tokenization plans in the near future,” said Tenev.

Robinhood offers around 200 stock tokens on Robinhood Chain. The products are backed by underlying shares but structured as tokenized debt securities, providing economic exposure without the same shareholder rights as conventional stocks. That distinction leaves their current structure outside the SEC’s innovation exemption, which requires equivalent rights, including dividends and voting rights.

Robinhood reported a 55% year-on-year fall in cryptocurrency revenue to $120 million in the third quarter, while crypto notional trading volume declined 38% to $50 billion. Trading volume on the Robinhood app fell 48% to $21 billion, while Bitstamp volume fell 28% to $29 billion. The prediction market business moved in the opposite direction, with event-contract revenue rising sixfold to $173 million and contracts traded increasing more than sevenfold to 16.4 billion.

Across the wider business, total net revenue rose 12% to a record $1.42 billion, below analyst expectations. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $0.60, missing estimates by 4 cents.