Robinhood expands beyond trading, launches social network for investors

Robinhood is moving beyond trading and into social networking. At its annual conference for active investors on Tuesday, September 9, the company unveiled Robinhood Social — a new in-app platform designed for users to share trades, follow strategies, and engage with one another in real time.

Founded in 2013, Robinhood Markets Inc is a popular US-based online brokerage known for commission-free stock and crypto trading, simple app design, and easy access for retail investors. It played a central role in the meme-stock frenzy of 2021, when retail traders banded together on forums like Reddit’s WallStreetBets to send stocks such as GameStop and AMC soaring.

Robinhood has since grown into a full-service platform, offering stocks, ETFs, options, crypto, and retirement accounts, catering especially to younger, mobile-first investors.

Interestingly, Robinhood Social marks a return to the company’s original vision. Before launching their trading platform, Co-Founders Vlad Tenev and Baiju Bhatt had considered building a community for sharing investment insights. The new feature revives that idea, aiming to capture the same energy that once spilled over into Reddit and Twitter during the pandemic.

When Robinhood Social debuts early next year, a small group of users will test it before a wider rollout. Posts won’t just be text or memes — every post must be tied to a real trade in stocks, options, or other assets. Those trades will update in real time, so followers can see performance as it happens.

Key features include:

• Following other investors and view stats like daily or one-year profit and loss.
• Profiles for public figures such as Nancy Pelosi or Bill Ackman, with trades pulled from legally-required disclosures.
• Comments on posts, enabling discussion built around verified trades.

Unlike Reddit or X, where posts often rely on screenshots that can be faked, Robinhood says the credibility of its platform comes from posts being directly linked to actual trades.

The emphasis is on authenticity. Users can trust that every chart, gain, or loss is real, not a doctored screenshot. Over time, Robinhood plans to add more typical social media features like direct messaging, image sharing, and link posting.

Robinhood is also broadening its trading features. Alongside the launch of Robinhood Social, it will begin letting retail investors take short positions in stocks — a strategy typically reserved for advanced traders — and will enable overnight trading on select index options.