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Robinhood (HOOD) announces standalone app for holding crypto & NFTs

Robinhood looks set to go toe to toe with Coinbase as the stock trading app announces a new standalone app for cryptocurrencies and NFTs.

TJ Denzer

May 17, 2022 2:50 PM

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With cryptocurrency and NFTs still remaining a popular investment these days, more and more groups are looking to cash in on interest in the trend. Stock trading platform and company Robinhood has been in the news, for better or worse, alongside a lot of trending investment stories over the course of more than a year and it looks set to sidle up alongside the crypto train as well. The company just announced a new standalone app which will act as a new wallet for cryptocurrency and NFT custody.

Robinhood announced its new upcoming standalone web3 wallet app via its Twitter and a new webpage on May 17, 2022. With the new app, Robinhood will give custody of customer cryptocurrencies and NFTs back to them as it aims to expand its reach beyond stock trade. With the launch of this app, Robinhood will step into the crypto wallet arena populated by competitors such as Coinbase and MetaMask. It will also go toe to toe with GameStop, which is launching its own NFT marketplace and crypto wallet by the end of its Q2 2022.

Robinhood’s move to expand into the cryptocurrency isn’t entirely new. The company actually began testing crypto wallet functionality as an extension of its usual services in September 2021. Outside of the fact that cryptocurrencies and NFTs still continue to be a hot topic in the investment space, Robinhood may be trying to improve its services to better its company valuation and image. Many will remember at the beginning of the GameStop (GME) stock craze when Robinhood simply blocked trade on the stock as its valuation reached peak volatility. However, Robinhood’s own stock valuation has continued to bleed out since its IPO back in July 2021, currently resting around $10 per share.

With Robinhood aiming to strengthen its presence in the cryptocurrency/NFT market, it will remain to be seen if the company can turn itself around. Stay tuned as we continue to update with further Robinhood and crypto news.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.