Key takeaways:
- Speaking at the Permissionless crypto conference on Tuesday, Robinhood co-founder and CEO Vlad Tenev announced the launch of the company’s Web3 wallet
- The new cryptocurrency wallet will allow users to tap into DeFi and NFTs
- Robinhood will cover the gas fees associated with token swapping
Robinhood is launching a standalone cryptocurrency wallet
Popular stock and crypto trading platform Robinhood is launching a Web3-focused digital wallet that lets users connect with decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible token (NFT) products and services. With the launch of a non-custodial crypto wallet, Robinhood is entering the space currently dominated by the likes of MetaMask and Trust Wallet.
The trading platform announced the rollout of the new wallet at blockchain conference Permisionless on Tuesday. It is worth noting that the waitlist for the Robinhood wallet grew to 1.6 million users by November 2021. Robinhood co-founder and CEO Vlad Tenev had this to say about the Web3 wallet launch:
“With our web3 wallet, we’re building a product that will satisfy the most advanced DeFi believers while creating a secure on-ramp for those who are just starting out in crypto to go deeper into the ecosystem.”
Tenev added that the Robinhood team believes that DeFi can transform the economic landscape and become the “operating system that powers the future of financial services.”
To make its product more competitive, Robinhood will cover gas fees associated with swapping coins by searching for the best rates available among the third-party liquidity providers.
The news of Robinhood launching its standalone Web3 wallet comes roughly two months after Coinbase crypto exchange revamped its own browser wallet to optimize access to DeFi and NFTs.