For many years, traders trying so as to add a brand new asset to their portfolio would speak to their dealer or scour monetary publications earlier than parting with their hard-earned cash. At present, many youthful traders flip to social media platforms like YouTube or X the place they’ll discover useful ideas—however extra typically a passel of predatory scammers shilling doubtful belongings they could not even have invested in. It’s an issue, however one Robinhood says it’s poised to repair.
On Tuesday, the buying and selling large introduced a brand new app function referred to as “Robinhood Social” the place customers can observe outstanding merchants and, if they need, mimic their trades. This type of exercise, often called “copy buying and selling” or “mirror buying and selling,” is frequent in Europe and different jurisdictions however is basically restricted within the U.S., partly for regulatory causes. This has pushed a extra casual model of the observe on social media.
In contrast to different copy buying and selling platforms, Robinhood’s model—which is launching early subsequent yr—received’t permit customers to robotically purchase and promote based mostly on what others are doing, although they are going to be capable to replicate others’ trades manually.
Whereas Robinhood Social is primarily aimed toward letting customers find-like minded communities of traders, the platform will even present the trades of well-known traders and Members of Congress, who’ve lengthy purchased and offered shares based mostly on privileged data (although an impending invoice may quickly limit this).
The service will show the actions of not simply inventory merchants, but additionally of these buying and selling crypto, choices and different belongings. Critically, the corporate will even require that each Robinhood Social person confirm their true id, and to offer proof they really have the portfolios and positions that they declare. This stands in distinction to lots of the funding claims on social media, the place individuals frequently publish faux or falsified data below pseudonyms.
In response to the corporate’s VP of Product Administration for Brokerage, Abhishek Fatehpuria, the plan is to create an preliminary pool of 10,000 Robinhood Social customers within the first quarter of subsequent yr, earlier than rolling it out to all prospects.
“We wish to ensure that the group is vibrant and wholesome from day one,” mentioned Fatehpuria.
Robinhood introduced the brand new social function at its annual HOOD summit, the place it additionally introduced expanded AI options that embody new instruments to simply assemble inventory screeners.
