Robinhood Posts $0.38 EPS as Gold Subscribers Hit Record 4.3 Million
Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ: HOOD) delivered first-quarter 2026 earnings of $0.38 per share, up 3% from $0.37 in the year-ago period, as the trading platform continued its transformation into a comprehensive financial services provider. Revenue climbed 15% year-over-year to $1.07 billion, driven by surging subscription revenue and resilient trading activity despite a sharp decline in cryptocurrency volumes.
The company's push beyond its trading roots gained momentum with Gold subscribers reaching a record 4.3 million, up 36% from last year, while net deposits of $18 billion represented a 22% annualized growth rate.
Key Numbers
Robinhood's revenue mix highlighted the company's evolving business model in Q1 2026. Transaction-based revenues increased 7% to $623 million, but the composition shifted dramatically. Event contracts revenue skyrocketed 320% to $147 million as the company's prediction markets gained traction, while options revenue rose 8% to $260 million and equities revenue jumped 46% to $82 million.
The cryptocurrency segment told a different story, with revenue plummeting 47% to $134 million as crypto trading volumes on the Robinhood app fell 48% year-over-year to $24 billion. However, the company offset this decline through its Bitstamp acquisition, which contributed $42 billion in crypto volumes.
Net interest revenues proved resilient, climbing 24% to $359 million despite lower short-term interest rates, benefiting from growth in interest-earning assets. The margin book nearly doubled year-over-year to a record $17 billion, while cash and deposits surged 71% to $16.7 billion.
Operating expenses increased 18% to $656 million, driven by marketing investments and acquisition-related costs. On an adjusted basis, operating expenses and share-based compensation rose 14% to $607 million. The company maintained strong profitability with adjusted EBITDA up 14% to $534 million.
What Management Said
CEO Vlad Tenev positioned Robinhood at "the center of our customers' financial lives" as the company enters what he called "the early innings of the Great Wealth Transfer." His emphasis on product velocity and innovation reflected the company's aggressive expansion beyond traditional trading.
CFO Shiv Verma struck an optimistic tone about current trends, noting that "Q2 is off to a good start in April, as equity and option trading volumes are on track to be the highest month of the year." Despite tax season typically causing outflows, he reported net deposits of approximately $5 billion month-to-date in April.
Management's confidence extended to their capital allocation strategy. The company repurchased $250 million worth of shares in Q1 at an average price of $81, bringing total buybacks to $1.2 billion since the program began in Q3 2024. The board refreshed the authorization to $1.5 billion in March, signaling continued confidence in the stock.
A significant development came from Robinhood's selection by the U.S. Department of Treasury to build and operate Trump Accounts, a new government-backed savings program. Management disclosed this will require an additional $100 million investment in 2026, raising their adjusted operating expense outlook to $2.7-2.825 billion from the prior $2.6-2.725 billion range. However, they noted the work is contracted on a "cost plus" basis, meaning revenues should exceed costs.
What to Watch
Robinhood's evolution into a "global financial super app" presents both opportunities and execution risks for investors to monitor. The company's multi-pronged growth strategy includes expanding internationally, with recent in-principle approval from Singapore's Monetary Authority, and pushing into private markets through its new Robinhood Ventures Fund I.
The declining cryptocurrency revenue remains a concern, down nearly half year-over-year, though management is betting on tokenization through their new Robinhood Chain, an Ethereum Layer 2 blockchain that has already processed over 100 million transactions in testing.
Product momentum appears strong with several initiatives gaining traction. Robinhood Banking crossed $2 billion in deposits from 125,000 customers, with 40% signed up for direct deposit. The Gold Card reached 800,000 funded customers, and the company launched trust and custodial accounts for family investing. Their AI-powered Cortex Assistant is rolling out across the app, while a social trading feature entered beta testing with 10,000 customers.
The key metric to watch remains net deposit growth, which at 22% annualized significantly outpaces revenue growth of 15%. This suggests Robinhood is successfully gathering assets but hasn't fully monetized them yet. With Total Platform Assets reaching $307 billion, up 39% year-over-year, the company has substantial room to improve average revenue per user, currently at $157.
For Q2 2026, early indicators appear positive with April showing the highest trading volumes of the year and continued deposit inflows despite tax payment season. However, investors should monitor whether the company can maintain its growth trajectory as interest rates potentially decline and whether new products can offset any continued weakness in crypto trading.
The Trump Accounts initiative represents both an opportunity and an operational challenge. While it validates Robinhood's institutional capabilities and should be margin-positive, the $100 million investment and execution complexity could pressure near-term results. Success here could open doors to additional government and institutional partnerships.
With the stock trading around $81 based on Q1 repurchase prices, investors are betting on Robinhood's transformation story. The 36% growth in Gold subscribers and record engagement metrics across futures, index options, and margin trading suggest the platform is successfully moving upmarket while maintaining its next-generation user base.
*Source: Robinhood Markets Q1 2026 SEC Filing*
*StockCliff Research*