Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev goes all in on AI, crypto, and Trump

The CEO of Robinhood, Vlad Tenev, supports artificial intelligence, cryptocurrency, and the policies implemented during the Trump administration. During an extensive discussion with Bloomberg, he elaborated on his perspective regarding market changes under new regulations, the potential impact of having a U.S. president who favors cryptocurrencies, and how advancements in AI could reshape stock trading landscapes.

Regarding U.S. President Donald Trump’s influence on the market, Tenev thinks that the present administration might establish an environment where both artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency can thrive together. expects The government should implement clearer guidelines and collaborate closely with the private sector to guarantee America’s dominance across key sectors.

“ They have intelligent individuals working on these issues. He emphasized again that less red tape and simpler regulations might motivate more companies to innovate and grow.

Is it necessary for cryptocurrency and stocks to have a combined marketplace?

Certain experts might consider cryptocurrencies as their own distinct category of assets, yet for the 38-year-old Tenev, they function more akin to a technological adjustment that enhances conventional financial markets.

“ I prefer to view cryptocurrency not just as a separate, tradeable asset but rather as a groundbreaking technology. It follows a progression from filing cabinets and handwritten records to mainframe computers. Therefore, when you have a tradable token across all blockchains with liquidity, it functions much like an initial public offering (IPO). ,” he explained.

Guided by the American-Bulgarian entrepreneur, Robinhood ventured into prediction markets, enabling users to wager on occurrences such as elections similar to how they would in a decentralized betting platform. Polymarket .

Nevertheless, Tenev maintains that his platform's market isn’t considered gambling since the probabilities aren't "determined by the house" but instead controlled by a regulated exchange.

“ This facilitates improved pricing insight. Similar to how we examine stock markets presently to gauge the direction of tariffs and assess their potential economic impact, ” he expounded.

Artificial Intelligence is now integrated into the finance sector.

In 2023, Tenev worked alongside programmer Tudor Achim to launch Harmonic, an AI company centered around mathematics. superintelligence According to the two founders, Harmonic’s large language model (LLM) has the ability to perform complex mathematical reasoning and solve problems efficiently.

The CEO of Robinhood asserts that progress in AI-powered mathematics might enhance areas such as physics, biology, and chemistry, leading to "major advances" in energy production and lifespan extension.

“ If you become superhuman at math, you essentially become superhuman across any quantitative science domain, and then you start making serious progress on problems like energy generation, longevity, and fundamental physics .”

Concluding the interview, Tenev reckoned that in financial markets, AI has done more to make its presence impossible to ignore.

“ A lot of the AI investment interest is concentrated on Nvidia. It’s become the No. 1-held stock on Robinhood, surpassing Tesla, which is another AI stock in its own right . If control over the technology is going to be centralized in the companies, then you have to be an investor .”

Robinhood’s crypto activity follows the market decline trend

In other developments, Robinhood’s shares surged about 7% in pre-market trading on Thursday and have climbed 130.57% over the past year. The price uptick comes after Deutsche Bank recently called The stock’s recent downturn presents "a good buying opportunity," supporting their assertions about the platform’s elevated trading volumes in stocks, derivatives, and higher client deposits.

Nevertheless, the present downturn in the cryptocurrency market has impacted its trading volumes. As reported by a press release Published on Tuesday, it was revealed that Robinhood saw $14.4 billion worth of crypto transactions in February, which marks a 29% decrease compared to the prior month.

On the contrary, equities and options trading experienced minor drops of just 1%. Nonetheless, the firm’s crypto trading volume has doubled compared to what it was in the prior year.

At the close of last month, Robinhood's total assets under custody (AUC) amounted to $187 billion, marking an 8% decrease since January yet showcasing a significant 58% rise compared to the previous year. For this period, net inflows were recorded at $4.8 billion, reflecting an annualized growth rate of approximately 28%.

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