The large stock purchase secured Bankman-Fried a 7,6% stake in Robinhood. Bankman-Fried's chief executive called it an "attractive investment" and settled for $ 648 million in company stock at an average price of $ 11,52.
The cryptocurrency billionaire said he had "no intention of taking action to change or influence control" of Robinhood and had bought the stake only as an investment.
As reported, it is possible that it offers the company "strategic alternatives or operational or management initiatives".
According to a securities filing, Bankman-Fried began shopping in mid-March and continued to buy them this week through Emergent Fidelity Technologies, an investment vehicle it controls. Cryptocurrency investor Anthony Pompliano was quick to make a comment:
Robinhood is expanding
Robinhood went public in July 2021 as one of the most anticipated IPOs of the year. The firm offers stock and cryptocurrency trading to a largely millennial customer base. The firm experienced a surge in revenues during the cryptocurrency boom of 2021 as new traders flocked to the platform; however, trading activity was poor in 2022 with the market crash.
Robinhood has the ambition to compete with Coinbase [quotation COIN] and to expand internationally by purchasing a British cryptocurrency company in April. FTX is also planning an expansion, having opened a waiting list for a new equity trading platform earlier this year.
Bankman-Fried is one of the richest people in the cryptocurrency industry. In April, Forbes estimated his net worth at $ 24 billion, making the 21-year-old the second richest person in the industry after Binance boss Changpeng Zhao. However, the estimate was reduced to $ XNUMX billion due to the recent market crash.
Bankman-Fried has been a supporter of Robinhood and has complimented the company and its brand in the past.
“Robinhood barely needs to advertise; his name conveys his brand and his message without the need for additional colors ”.
Robinhood shares rise, FTX token fall
Shares in the company benefited from this move, with a nearly 24% surge in after-hours trading. HOOD's price is currently $ 10,60, following a jump from about $ 8,50 on Thursday.
However, the stock has declined over the past ten months. HOOD hit an all-time high of around $ 55 in August, but fell 80% from that level at current prices.
The FTX FTT token posted a marginal 2% gain on the day, but was also affected by the collapse of the cryptocurrency market in general. At the time of writing, the FTX token was trading at $ 30,89, plummeting 23% over the past fortnight. The exchange token is currently down 64% from its all-time high of $ 84 in September 2021.
