Robinhood’s blockchain surge boosts Arbitrum as ARB token climbs 19%
Robinhood’s newly launched blockchain network is gaining rapid traction, with increased memecoin trading activity driving transaction volume and creating new revenue opportunities for the Arbitrum ecosystem.
The brokerage’s blockchain initiative has made a strong debut, with early growth benefiting Arbitrum, the Ethereum-based network that powers Robinhood Chain’s underlying technology.
Arbitrum’s native token ARB rose 19% over the past 24 hours, making it the top-performing cryptocurrency among the 100 largest digital assets, according to CoinDesk data. Bitcoin also moved higher, gaining 1.5% to trade above $63,000, while Ethereum posted a smaller 0.5% increase in a relatively calm market.
The rally came as Robinhood Chain recorded significant activity shortly after its public launch. Built on Arbitrum’s technology stack, the network processed more than $568 million in trading volume on Wednesday and surpassed $350 million in volume on Thursday, based on blockchain data from Entropy Advisors.
Much of the early demand was driven by heavy memecoin trading, while stablecoin liquidity expanded quickly, with balances on the network exceeding $260 million within its first week.
The increased activity is also benefiting Arbitrum financially. As part of the agreement between the networks, 10% of Robinhood Chain’s net protocol revenue will flow back into the Arbitrum ecosystem, with the funds distributed between the DAO treasury and the Developer Guild.
Robinhood accelerates blockchain expansion
Robinhood introduced its new blockchain during its London event last week, making it a central part of the company’s broader cryptocurrency expansion strategy.
The firm announced plans to offer tokenized U.S. stock trading to users in more than 120 countries, launched a DeFi-powered savings product that generates returns through lending protocol Morpho, and revealed plans to explore AI-driven trading features and additional asset classes.
The network’s early performance has exceeded some forecasts. In an April report, FalconX estimated Robinhood Chain could generate around $1.1 million in transaction fees during its first six months.
Brendan Ma, head of investment strategies at the Arbitrum Foundation, said the network’s current activity suggests a much stronger revenue trajectory. He noted that Robinhood Chain is already operating at a pace equivalent to more than $12.5 million in annualized revenue based on recent trading levels. He added that large-scale activity involving tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) has not yet fully emerged.
While the initial trading surge may eventually slow, sustained blockchain usage could become a valuable revenue source for Robinhood over the long term. FalconX estimates transaction revenue could potentially grow to $60 million annually by 2030 as users move beyond tokenized stocks and explore DeFi applications and other on-chain services.
