Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Retail traders love trading cryptocurrency.
Why it matters: Robinhood gained popularity as a brokerage app offering commission-free stock trading. But the company's recent performance suggests the current crop of retail traders are more interested in cryptocurrencies than stocks.
Driving the news: Robinhood reported Wednesday that Q2 trading revenues surged 141% year over year to $451 million.
- Cryptocurrency trading accounted for $233 million of that trading revenue, which was more than options trading revenue ($165 million) and equity trading revenue ($52 million) combined.
- Over 60% of its 22.5 million funded accounts traded cryptocurrencies during the quarter.
- "The three months ended June 30, 2021, is the first quarter where a larger share of new customers placed their first trade in crypto rather than equities," the company said.
Threat level: The company, however, warned that trading would slow in the coming quarter.
- "For the three months ended September 30, 2021, we expect seasonal headwinds and lower trading activity across the industry to result in lower revenues and considerably fewer new funded accounts than in the prior quarter," the company said.
State of play: Robinhood shares fell 9% in after-hours trading after the company published these results.