Robinhood launches ‘Connect’ to allow users to fund Web3 wallets and apps

BLOCKCHAIN

Robinhood Markets Inc., a commission-free stock trading and investing platform, Thursday introduced “Robinhood Connect,” a new feature that will allow users to fund their Web3 wallets and decentralized apps directly using their Robinhood Crypto accounts.

Users of Web3 decentralized apps face a challenge when trying to get cryptocurrency tokens for their wallets and apps. Often, they must first go through an intermediary, such as an exchange to buy cryptocurrency, and then move the crypto tokens to a wallet such as MetaMask and then transfer them to the dapp, or decentralized finance app, or Web3 game they want to play.

Using Robinhood Connect, developers will be able to embed the feature into their dapps. That means Robinhood users can buy, transfer and fund their own wallets without ever leaving the app. Competing services on the market include products such as MoonPay and Coinbase Pay, which also allow users to buy and transfer crypto directly in wallets and dapps.

“Crypto and Web3 have the potential to change the future of the financial system for the better, but we recognize there are still significant hurdles preventing broader adoption,” said Johann Kerbrat, general manager of Robinhood Crypto.

Although Robinhood launched as a pure stock trading and investing platform in 2013, its crypto aspirations began in early 2018 when the platform announced zero-fee trading for bitcoin and Ethereum. At the time the feature was only available in a small number of states, but now it’s available across the entire U.S. except for Hawaii and Nevada.

“Our conviction in the future of Web3 remains strong,” said Kerbrat, noting the company’s continuing crypto ambitions to build easy-to-use products that will accelerate the adoption of the technology. He also aims to position Robinhood as “the low-cost, easiest-to-use onramp to crypto.”

Robinhood Connect is already integrated with the MyDoge and Slingshot wallets, as well as Giddy, which raised $6.9 million in funding this week. Exodus, a wallet with an incorporated decentralized cryptocurrency exchange and cross-platform integration, and Solana-friendly Phantom wallet are also integrating Connect soon. The platform allows users to fund their wallets with bitcoin, Ethereum and 16 other cryptocurrencies.

The new service comes a couple of months after Robinhood launched its own crypto wallet, available on the Apple App Store, which allows users to own and swap crypto. As it is a fully complete crypto wallet, they can also use it to connect to Web3 dapps and to their Robinhood Crypto account.

In addition to Connect, Robinhood has also revamped its crypto app experience for users including improved navigation and new advanced charting for power users to understand their portfolios better. The app now also allows for advanced order types such as stop orders and stop limit orders on crypto tokens. Custom price alerts can also be set based on personalized trading strategies so that users are never caught off guard by market changes.

Image: Robinhood