Robinhood Ventures into Private Equity Tokens with New Fund

Robinhood (HOOD) is expanding its footprint in private markets through a newly registered venture capital fund aimed at democratizing pre-IPO investment opportunities. The Robinhood Ventures Fund I (RVI), filed with the SEC, will acquire stakes in high-growth private companies and list on the NYSE pending approval.

The MOVE follows controversy earlier this year when the platform offered EU users tokenized shares of OpenAI and SpaceX via a special purpose vehicle. Despite pushback—including clarifications that these tokens didn't confer equity ownership—Robinhood continues championing retail access to traditionally institutional-grade assets. "We're leveling a playing field that's favored the wealthy for decades," said CEO Vlad Tenev.

Concurrently, Robinhood launched a layer-2 blockchain network in Europe to facilitate tokenized U.S. stock trading, signaling a strategic pivot toward blockchain-based financial infrastructure.