Key Takeaways
- Robinhood’s Johann Kerbrat told CCN that tokenization could help close the wealth gap by making private market opportunities more widely accessible, even if the model has drawn criticism.
- Kerbrat says that Robinhood can appeal to a wider demographic than only crypto-focused rivals.
- Crypto has become one of Robinhood’s fastest-growing business lines.
Robinhood’s tokenized stock program has faced recent scrutiny, including criticism from OpenAI, but the company says the model could help close the wealth gap by giving more investors access to private markets.
Talking to CCN at TOKEN2049 in Singapore, Johann Kerbrat, the firm’s SVP and General Manager for Crypto, discussed Robinhood’s push into tokenized stocks, the rapid growth of its staking products, and the future of its controversial prediction markets.
Tokenized Stock Program
In July, Robinhood rolled out “stock tokens” tied to firms including OpenAI and SpaceX, giving users exposure to privately held companies that have not announced plans to go public.
The products, offered to European app users, are structured as blockchain-tracked contracts rather than actual equity.
Robinhood describes them as derivatives that mirror the price of the underlying stock or ETF, while not conferring traditional shareholder rights such as voting.
The move drew swift criticism from OpenAI, which said it had no involvement with the offering.
Kerbrat defended the company’s approach and said tokenization could help close the gap between wealthy investors and ordinary users.
“There’s a lot of value for us to not have, necessarily to ask, to request the issuer, if we can tokenize or not the assets, because in the case of some of the stock company, they can very easily raise money with VCs and the private market, and that really excludes most of the population in the U.S.,” he told CCN.
He argued that the current system also leaves retail investors disadvantaged.
“If you’re not an accredited investor, you cannot even invest in these deals. And even if you’re an accredited investor, like the amount of people that are able to access this deal is very small,” he said.
Adding: “And so what happens is that when these deals are going public, then everyone is basically being used as exit liquidity.”
Tokenization, he said, could “bridge that gap and the wealth gap between the ultra wealthy and the day-to-day people.”
Kerbrat added that U.S. rules on accredited investors should shift from wealth thresholds to knowledge requirements: “Instead of being a wealth check… it should be a knowledge check where you should demonstrate that you understand the risk that you’re taking and how you invest.”
One App For All
Despite scrutiny, Kerbrat said Robinhood’s identity is evolving from a stock trading app into a broader financial platform.
“The idea is to have one app for all your financial needs,” he told CCN. “Crypto is now part of all the assets that people are looking for.”
By adding products such as staking and perpetual contracts, the company aims to give traders more ways to diversify their holdings, he said.
Kerbrat said Robinhood’s breadth of products helps it attract a wider demographic than rivals focused only on crypto.
“We have a retirement product, we have brokerage products, we have our crypto product, and it allows us to get people that are more interested into using Robin for multiple things and not just crypto.”
“We are not just targeting a very specific group of people. We are targeting everyone,” he said.
Robinhood’s Crypto Push
Crypto has become one of Robinhood’s fastest-growing businesses, generating $160 million in revenue last quarter.
Kerbrat explained how staking is gaining immense traction.
“We launched it in the EU last year, but in the U.S. only since June, but we saw the amount of people actually engaging with the product being very high,” he said.
“People not only stake their current assets, but they also get interested into how to secure the network, how to contribute to the network.”
He also pointed to enthusiasm for newly launched perpetuals in Europe.
“It’s currently 1, 2, 3x in leverage, and it’s available on Bitcoin and XRP, and so we see a lot of enthusiasm for this one, and people are using it also to not just go long, but also to short the assets,” he said.
Prediction Markets Blur Traditional Lines
Robinhood’s prediction markets recently crossed 4 billion contracts traded, with more than two billion in the second quarter alone.
The platform has come under fire from regulators, with the New Jersey Department of Gaming Enforcement forcing it to halt all bets in New Jersey.
However, Kerbrat said he can see the landscape slowly changing.
“The reality of things is that the investment lines are blurring little by little,” he said.
“People are not just holding ETF anymore. They are self-directing, like on stock.
“They’re also using crypto and other products now, so I just think it’s part of the evolution of what we’ve seen around finance for everyone at this point,” he added.
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Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
Insha Zia is the News Editor at CCN. Based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, he ensures the CCN newsroom provides value to readers by educating, informing, and engaging them with accurate and timely coverage.
Before joining CCN, Insha was a Senior Journalist at DailyCoin, where his career in crypto journalism took off. At DailyCoin he garnered ample experience by covering some of the biggest news in the crypto industry, especially in the Cardano ecosystem, and maintain solid relations with KOLs in the industry.
Insha has worked as a ghostwriter and a developer for three years. He has co-authored numerous articles in reputable publications, including Hackernoon, Yahoo Finance, and Nasdaq. He also has experience as a Solidity Developer and a Data Analyst.
Insha’s developer and journalist backgrounds go hand in hand when educating readers on technically complex concepts within the crypto space. He values accuracy, transparency, and delivering valuable insights to his readers.
Insha firmly believes education can propel the mass adoption of the crypto space. He is committed to giving CCN readers a greater understanding of the technology using his technical background.
Insha earned a Bachelor of Science in Computer Systems Engineering at the University of Engineering and Technology, Peshawar, in 2022. His technical foundation includes expertise in quantitative and qualitative research, data analysis, programming languages, and cybersecurity.
His comprehensive skill set enables him to communicate complex concepts to crypto readers with authority and clarity, making his articles both informative and engaging for his audience.
Insha is determined to take CCN to the top of the industry. When he’s not working on his next article or editing, Insha enjoys playing video games, mainly in FPS and MMORPG genres. He also loves playing soccer and has supported Arsenal since he was six.
