Key Takeaways
"Layer 2 solutions allow you to have security and decentralization for free," said Johann Kerbrat, head of Robinhood's crypto division, referring to Ethereum's base layer. He believes that emerging Layer 1 networks rarely achieve true decentralization, often resulting in slower and less efficient systems than traditional finance infrastructure, lacking the trustless guarantees that blockchains offer.
This logic underpins the creation of Robinhood Chain, the company's custom network built on Arbitrum architecture, designed to support the tokenization of real-world assets. The public testnet launched on February 10, 2026, processing 4 million transactions in its first week, with a mainnet launch planned for later this year.
Regarding Robinhood's rationale for developing an Ethereum L2, Kerbrat stated: To accelerate ecosystem growth, the company has committed $1 million to Arbitrum's 'Open Day' event in 2026, funding developer activities and hackathons. Progress in tokenization is already evident: Robinhood has tokenized approximately 2,000 U.S. stocks and ETFs for European clients on Arbitrum, a significant increase from around 200 at launch.
Robinhood is not alone in this strategy. Coinbase launched Base, and Kraken introduced Ink. Major exchanges increasingly view proprietary Layer 2 networks not just as products, but as financial infrastructure they fully own, controlling the interface and underlying architecture. Ethereum's own development trajectory has accelerated this trend; its co-founder Vitalik Buterin has noted that as the base layer scales faster than anticipated, L2s will shift from general scaling solutions to specialized, use-case-specific networks. Robinhood Chain exemplifies this trend.
CEO Vlad Tenev has been explicit about the broader vision. He likens tokenization to a "freight train"—unstoppable, ultimately enabling 24/7 trading, instant settlement, and integrating tokenized stocks into traditional financial products like mortgages. However, realizing this vision in the U.S. remains highly dependent on the regulatory environment.
Regulatory Landscape is Complex—Especially in the U.S.
Robinhood's tokenization ambitions are currently geographically constrained. The 2,000 tokenized stocks it offers are only available to European retail clients, adhering to the EU's MiCA and MiFID II frameworks. In Europe, these tokens are treated as derivatives—not direct ownership of the underlying shares—a structure that has drawn scrutiny from the Bank of Lithuania, which is seeking further clarification on what legally backs these assets.
In the U.S., the path forward is considerably more complex. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) made its stance clear in a joint statement in January 2026: tokenized equity is a security, full stop. The format of the blockchain does not change this. The agency had already signaled this as early as July 2025, when its Crypto Task Force reminded firms that putting assets on-chain does not alter their definition.
