Robinhood CEO Pushes UK to Adopt US-Style Retail Stock Tactics

Robinhood’s CEO says the U.K. should look to the U.S. to increase retail stock ownership.

“Think of it as similar to where the US was 30 to 40 years ago,” Vlad Tenev said in a Bloomberg Television interview in London published Thursday (July 2).

He cited things like employer-sponsored 401(k) pensions and the White House initiatives to give newborns equity ownership.

“There is no reason why the same things would not also work here,” Tenev said.

As Bloomberg notes, Robinhood arrived in England two years ago with the goal of increasing retail ownership of equities, which are low in the U.K. compared to the U.S. Now, the British government is trying to boost interest in domestic stocks, with measures like easier initial public offerings (IPOs) and tax breaks on trading in new listings.

Asked by Bloomberg about the role of regulators, Tenev said the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) showed “a great deal of openness to innovation” in his talks with the regulator. The authority recently said it would simplify requirements in its crypto regime coming next year.

Tenev, who is also Robinhood’s founder, added European regulators were ahead with the Markets in Crypto Assets regulation, which was followed by the Genius Act in the U.S.

The report also touched on concerns about an AI bubble, which Tenev dismissed, saying that “companies are generating significant revenue” that demonstrates there is substance behind the businesses, and adding that ownership “is a multidecade game.”

The interview came one day after Robinhood debuted the public mainnet of Robinhood Chain, a Layer 2 blockchain.

“AI-native and purpose-built for real-world assets, Robinhood Chain creates a permissionless environment for builders to innovate seamlessly,” Robinhood said in a news release.

The blockchain is one of several new decentralized finance and agentic products the company announced during its event, “Robinhood Presents: The World is Flat.”

These include new Stock Tokens available on the Robinhood Wallet in 120 countries; the rollout of Robinhood Earn to eligible U.S. users, letting them lend USDG; and an integration that allows users to access perpetual futures on decentralized exchange Lighter within Robinhood Wallet.

Meanwhile, Tenev announced last month that Robinhood securities business can now serve as an underwriter for IPOs. He said becoming an underwriter, and not simply a selling group member, is a natural progression in better serving customers and issuers.