Robinhood, a popular retail trading platform, has made a deal to acquire Bitstamp, a crypto exchange based in the U.K.

Trading platform Robinhood announced Thursday that it has agreed to acquire crypto exchange Bitstamp. This move aims to expand Robinhood’s crypto presence globally and attract institutional clients through new product offerings, leveraging Bitstamp’s established relationships, infrastructure, and industry-leading products.

The $200 million all-cash deal, set to close in the first half of 2025, was advised by Barclays Capital and Galaxy Digital, underscoring the professional guidance in the sale, as per the press release.

“The acquisition of Bitstamp is a major step in growing our crypto business,” said Johann Kerbrat, general manager of Robinhood Crypto “Bitstamp’s highly trusted and long standing global exchange has shown resilience through market cycles … Through this strategic combination, we are better positioned to expand our footprint outside of the U.S. and welcome institutional customers to Robinhood.”

Robinhood did not mention any layoffs or staff changes but stated that the two companies will merge and collaborate to ensure consistent service, security, and reliability for customers as they innovate and share knowledge across continents. Robinhood emphasized in the release that transparency will be maintained throughout this process.

Implications

This merger is crucial for attracting retail investors to the crypto market — especially in the United States. Coinbase (COIN) has a significant market share in the North American crypto market. This merger not only signals that Robinhood is serious about crypto, but it also provides competition to the retail crypto market. 

We believe crypto will fundamentally reorganize the financial system, and we’re acquiring @Bitstamp to accelerate our vision. Soon we’ll combine forces with Bitstamp’s global footprint, core spot exchange and industry-leading products like crypto-as-a-service, institutional…

— Vlad Tenev (@vladtenev) June 6, 2024

Robinhood’s acquisition of Bitstamp marks the launch of Robinhood’s first institutional crypto business. By leveraging all that Bitstamp offers, such as the white label solution Bitstamp-as-a-service, institutional lending, and staking, Robinhood can access a pre-established infrastructure in the crypto space. Bitstamp’s core spot exchange, offering over 85 tradable assets and its staking and lending products will bolster Robinhood’s cryptocurrency offerings.