
FinTech News
Robinhood Wallet Adding Support for Ethereum Swaps and More
Robinhood Wallet has announced a number of new features coming to the Wallet app.
About the updates:
Robinhood’s standalone, non-custodial crypto wallet app aptly called Wallet is expanding. First, the app will now support custody for Bitcoin and Dogecoin. This means that all users will now be able to send and receive these assets using Wallet. These two networks join those previously supported including Arbitrum, Optimism, Polygon, and Ethereum.
Speaking of the Ethereum network, Robinhood Wallet is also rolling out support for in-app swaps. This feature is currently available for select users but will be available to all “in the coming weeks.” With this update, users will be able to swap more than 200 tokens without holding Ethereum. Instead, network fees will be automatically deducted from tokens users already hold.
Other recent changes:
Since launching earlier this year, Robinhood Wallet has already made some other updates. This includes launching a Web3 browser, allowing users to search for and connect to dApps. Additionally, Robinhood notes that it’s been expanding its rewards program that gifts users USDC for completing lessons on crypto and DeFi topics. For example, one lesson currently in the app walks users through the difference between custodial and non-custodial wallets. Those who complete this lesson can earn 1 USDC, which is deposited directly into their Robinhood Wallet.
At this time, Robinhood Wallet is available to all iOS users. An Android version of the app is expected to arrive later this year, with a waitlist currently open.
What they’re saying:
Commenting on the recent updates, Robinhood Crypto GM Johann Kerbrat stated, “With Robinhood Wallet we stripped away many of the complexities of DeFi and the broader Web3 ecosystem, and reduced some of the challenges and barriers to entry for everyday people. We’ve been really encouraged by the adoption so far, and are excited to keep building for our customers around the world as we ship new features and expand support for new networks and tokens.”
My thoughts:
Overall, these updates seem to be good news as they mean more options for users. Having previously tried to swap tokens on the app only to run into issues, I’m interested to see if the Ethereum network swap support makes things any easier for newbies like me. Meanwhile, I’ll admit that I didn’t even realize that it took Wallet this long to support Bitcoin, but this seems like a no-brainer addition. Nevertheless, despite the risks, I think I’d still personally prefer to hold my assets on the main Robinhood app rather than Wallet for the sole purpose of being able to quickly convert back to fiat. But, for those wanting to keep custody of their own crypto, perhaps these updates will make Robinhood Wallet a more attractive option.