Robinhood Builds on Private Equity Token Push With New Venture Capital Fund

Robinhood (HOOD) is moving deeper into private markets with a new venture capital fund designed to give everyday investors access to companies before they go public.

The company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) an initial registration statement to launch Robinhood Ventures Fund I (RVI), a closed-end investment vehicle that aims to buy stakes in private companies that are leaders in their industries.

The fund, managed by a newly formed subsidiary called Robinhood Ventures, would be traded on the New York Stock Exchange, pending regulatory approval.

Robinhood faced criticism earlier this year after it announced that it was offering users in the European Union access to private equity tokens.

The company opened access to these tokens through tokenized shares in OpenAI and SpaceX, while also launching its own layer-2 blockchain network for users in the European Union to have access to tokenized publicly traded U.S. stocks.

At the time, the company was forced to explain that its private equity tokens were held by a special purpose vehicle, after OpenAI warned that the tokens did not represent equity in the firm. Still, the company is pushing forward with offering private equity access to retail investors.

“For decades, wealthy people and institutions have invested in private companies while retail investors have been unfairly locked out,” Robinhood Chairman and CEO Vlad Tenev said.

Robinhood pointed out that the number of public companies in the U.S. has dropped by nearly half since 2000, while the private market has ballooned to over $10 trillion in estimated value, according to Federal Reserve data.

If approved, Robinhood Ventures Fund I would invest in a small basket of private companies across various industries and hold them through IPO and beyond. Shares would be available to buy and sell through traditional brokerages.

Robinhood shares are down 1.4% in today’s trading session to $113.39.