Robinhood is going forward despite recent public-relations troubles. The online brokerage filed confidentially for initial public offering (IPO) on Monday.
Robinhood showed confidence in its future with a short statement on Tuesday afternoon it has submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission for IPO.
The Silicon Valley startup did not disclose when it expects to go through with its plans or how many shares it is planning to sell.
The announcement stated:
The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined. The initial public offering is expected to take place after the SEC completes its review process, subject to market and other conditions.
Bloomberg, which first reported the news, said that Robinhood has selected Nasdaq for the listing.
The trading app increased its popularity among young people during the lockdowns in the coronavirus pandemic with its zero-commission business model playing a significant role.
The gained popularity of the venue also brought regulatory scrutiny and public-relations problems at the beginning of the year. Robinhood found itself in the eye of the storm during the GameStop frenzy in January as it had to temporarily ban users from buying more stock. The brokerage had to then raise billions of dollars to comply with clearinghouses requirements.
Robinhood was also sued earlier this year by the parents of a young boy who committed suicide after seeing a negative balance in his trading account and mistakenly believed he owed $730,000. The tragedy brought even more attention to the gamified nature of the platform.
Despite the challenges, the trading app faced, it continues to grow and add new users.
In December last year, Robinhood reputedly selected Goldman Sachs to lead the development of its initial public offering with an expected value of over $20 billion. Robinhood’s last funding round in September valued the company at $11.7 billion.
