Robinhood has received its Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) registration for crypto-asset services in the United Kingdom in late July 2026, giving the US brokerage a head start under Britain's incoming crypto licensing framework, which takes effect in autumn 2027. The UK ranks among the largest retail investment markets in Europe, making the registration strategically significant beyond its narrow regulatory scope.

Robinhood operates a trading platform spanning stocks, options, and cryptocurrencies, and ranks among the largest retail brokers in the United States. The FCA, Britain's financial markets regulator, supervises the conduct of banks, brokers, and crypto-asset providers. The newly granted registration falls under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 — a baseline anti-money-laundering (AML) framework that has been in force since 2020. It is not a full financial markets licence and applies solely to the company's UK operations.

Robinhood's British subsidiary, Robinhood UK Ltd, has held FCA authorisation as a stockbroker since August 2019. However, the platform had never offered crypto trading in the UK. The company announced the British crypto launch alongside its quarterly results, two days before the registration was confirmed. With this approval, Robinhood joins just over 50 registered crypto firms in the UK, a list that includes Ripple, Kraken, BlackRock, and BNY.

FCA Registration: A Selective Approval

The FCA introduced the crypto register in 2020 as an anti-money-laundering measure. Since then, no provider may lawfully offer crypto services to British customers without being listed. Registered firms are required to identify their customers, monitor transactions, and report suspicious activity.

The regulator grants registered status sparingly. Since the registration process began, the FCA has received 368 applications and approved approximately 50 — a success rate of roughly 14 percent. The register encompasses both crypto exchanges and custodian banks. Among the registered firms are several crypto-native platforms that have operated in the UK market for years, meaning Robinhood is entering a competitive landscape rather than an untapped one.

For Robinhood, the registration is more than a procedural milestone. The subsidiary may now lawfully extend its crypto services to British customers, giving UK users access to Robinhood's crypto trading platform for the first time. The registration also binds the provider to AML and counter-terrorist-financing controls. It does not, however, address investor protection or capital requirements. Nearly seven years elapsed between Robinhood's initial broker authorisation and its crypto registration.

UK Overhauls Crypto Regulation

The United Kingdom is simultaneously restructuring its entire crypto oversight framework. The government is replacing the existing AML-focused register with a comprehensive licensing regime under the FSMA Cryptoassets Regulations 2026. Under the new system, crypto providers will for the first time require a full financial markets licence, bringing them closer to the regulatory standing of traditional financial service providers. The overhaul aligns the UK with a broader European trend toward consolidated crypto oversight, as the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) took full effect in 2024.

The application window opens at the end of September 2026 and closes at the end of February 2027, giving firms a five-month filing period. The new regime takes full effect in autumn 2027. Firms holding an existing registration will be able to carry portions of their preparatory work into the new procedure. Robinhood therefore enters the forthcoming application process with a lead time that many competitors currently lack. Until the transition is complete, the existing register continues to govern the platform.

Prediction Markets Surpass Crypto Revenue at Robinhood

The UK approval arrives at a time when Robinhood's crypto business is diminishing in significance. In the second quarter of 2026, the company posted total revenue of USD 1.31 billion — a 32 percent year-over-year increase. Net profit rose 48 percent to USD 573 million, outpacing revenue growth. Earnings per share reached USD 0.62, including USD 0.14 attributable to a one-off effect.

Crypto transaction revenue, however, declined 38 percent year-over-year to USD 100 million, down from just over USD 160 million in the same quarter a year earlier. The company attributed the drop to weaker retail trading activity. Crypto accounted for less than a tenth of total quarterly revenue.

For the first time, Robinhood earned more from prediction markets than from cryptocurrencies. Event contracts — instruments tied to the outcome of future events such as elections, interest-rate decisions, or sports results — generated USD 156 million in the quarter, more than 50 percent above crypto revenue and over ten times the year-earlier figure. The prediction-market category has expanded rapidly since US regulators cleared retail-facing event-contract venues such as Kalshi to operate under CFTC oversight.

The quarter marked the strongest by revenue in the company's history. Net interest income remained the single largest earnings line at USD 389 million, followed by the options business at USD 342 million. The shift in the revenue mix appears structural rather than seasonal. Crypto remains part of the product portfolio but is declining as an earnings driver, even as the broker expands its international crypto footprint.

Broader International Expansion

The FCA registration forms one component of a wider international growth strategy. Robinhood reports approximately 28 million customers across 38 countries. Its UK offering had previously been limited to stocks.

In June 2026, the company completed its acquisition of Canadian crypto group WonderFi, which operates crypto trading platforms in Canada. Robinhood paid CAD 0.36 per share, totalling approximately CAD 250 million, thereby entering the Canadian market.

In the European Union, Robinhood extended its perpetual futures offering to 30 countries. These contracts have no expiry date and allow leveraged exposure to price movements. The company has also introduced stock tokens in more than 120 countries — instruments that track share price movements without conferring shareholder rights. The broader product suite includes an in-house blockchain, Robinhood Chain, which operates as a layer-2 network on Ethereum, as well as the product Robinhood Earn.

A dedicated prediction-market infrastructure is also taking shape, encompassing Kalshi, ForecastEx, and the joint-venture exchange Rothera. Kalshi and ForecastEx each operate regulated trading venues for event contracts in the United States. Rothera is a joint venture between Robinhood and derivatives firm Susquehanna International Group. According to the Wall Street Journal, Robinhood is also in discussions with Crypto.com about integrating its event contracts onto that platform, though neither company has confirmed an agreement.

Looking Ahead in the UK

Robinhood's full UK financial markets licence remains pending. However, the company can leverage its existing registration during the new application process, whereas competitors without a current entry must complete the entire procedure from scratch. Robinhood has until the end of February 2027 to file under the new regime. From autumn 2027, the full licence will replace today's register, and providers without it will be barred from offering crypto services to British customers.

Robinhood has not yet announced a launch date for crypto trading in the United Kingdom.