Breaking: Robinhood to Buy Crypto Giant Bitstamp

Zero-fee trading platform Robinhood has announced its decision to acquire major cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp for $200 million.

According to a Thursday announcement, the acquisition deal will help its expansion efforts outside the US. Robinhood will be able to leverage Bitstamp's collection of active licenses and registrations around the world. 

The deal, which is still subject to regulatory approvals, is expected to close in the first part of the next year. 

Bitstamp, which started operating back in 2011, is one of the oldest and most reputed cryptocurrency exchanges. The Luxembourg-based exchange is known for its strong regulatory compliance and stringent listing rules. 

After gaining popularity with retail traders, Robinhood now also intends to cater to institutional clients after the recent Bitstamp deal. The newly acquired European exchange offers a slew of institution-grade services that will help Robinhood speed up its efforts. 

Johann Kerbrat, general manager of Robinhood Crypto, has noted that Bitstamp has "one of the strongest reputations" across retail investors and sophisticated institutions.