Commission-free investing app Robinhood today expanded its cryptocurrency service to another American state, this time bringing the derivative product for its clients in Utah.
Robinhood’s offering is particularly popular among the “millennial” population, who appreciate the ease of using the app to trade several asset classes without fees. As for the crypto offering, the platform offers no-fee Bitcoin and Ethereum trading services.
Utah joins a handful of states that were added over the last two months as part of a phased market rollout that is moving along. Just this month, Robinhood became available in two cryptocurrency-friendly states: New Mexico and Wisconsin.
Robinhood Crypto got off to a good start in late February for residents in five states – California, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, and New Hampshire.
The announcement has triggered a flurry of responses on Robinhood’s Twitter account, ranging from requests to add more Cryptocurrencies to asking the company to expand to other states.
Robinhood Crypto is buzzing in Utah. Trade Bitcoin and Ethereum, commission-free. ? pic.twitter.com/5tMgMaqXRf
— Robinhood (@RobinhoodApp) May 15, 2018
Robinhood seeks to carve out its niche by letting traders buy and sell cryptocurrency for $0 a trade. In doing so, the company plans to make money from order flows, a common tactic used by discount brokers to generate revenue by directing orders to certain trading venues. The company also receives interest on unused cash deposits from user accounts and offers a premium paid account for $10 per month, which gives users added features.
The six-year-old startup has been growing at an explosive rate. For now, Robinhood can keep its free platform afloat through compromises such as not having many physical locations, maintaining only a small staff for client service, and not spending on massive promotional campaigns.
Last week, Robinhood raised its latest round of funding, bringing in $363 million at a $5.6 billion valuation.
The Silicon Valley company said that it would use the funds to increase hiring and develop new products around its stock trading app, which has more than 4 million users.
