Retail Banking Institute | When Robinhood became a banker

When Robinhood became a banker

Robinhood is one of the UK's favourite fictional characters, a forest dwelling former nobleman who robs the rich to give to the poor. It's also the name of one of the successful new US fintechs that offers retail trading and investment services at very low fees, which soared in popularity during the pandemic. Now people in the UK using the UK's tax-free Individual Savings Accounts will soon have a new option: Robinhood. "Jordan Sinclair, president of Robinhood UK, said in an interview with Bloomberg News that customers had been asking for options since the company launched in the UK last year," Bloomberg reports. "He said the type of contract that customers can take out 'represents an underlying NVIDIA stock or Tesla stock, or S&P 500 for an index option. So that piece is very well regulated,' he added. Options trading, where investors bet on or hedge against price movements, is permitted in the UK, though the Financial Conduct Authority has imposed limits on riskier products including contracts for difference and binary options for retail customers. Brokers including IG Group Holdings Plc and Saxo already offer options in the UK market."