Robinhood Granted SEC Exemption for Tokenized Stock Trading in U.S.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) granted Robinhood Markets an 'Innovation Exemption' on Sept. 17, allowing the company to trade tokenized versions of U.S. stocks without registering as a stock exchange for five years. This exemption aligns with CEO Vlad Tenev's long-standing campaign since early 2025 and has already driven Robinhood’s share price up by about $120. The SEC conditions require that each token must carry the same rights as traditional shares, including voting and dividend privileges—unlike Robinhood’s current overseas tokens. The company plans to address these gaps with in-kind redemption and voting features for its stock tokens. With a public blockchain network already launched and recent regulatory approval, Robinhood is positioned to bring compliant U.S.-based tokenized trading by the end of 2027. Robinhood has demonstrated rapid product scaling before—such as event contracts—and could leverage this momentum in equities trading revenue growth (up 95% year over year). The potential for weekend and collateral-based trading may further expand its existing customer base without acquiring new users.
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