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Robinhood launches crypto trading in NY as bitcoin price roller coaster continues
Online stockbroker Robinhood Financial LLC officially launched its zero-fee cryptocurrency exchange service Thursday in New York at a time when bitcoin’s price continues to experience a roller coaster ride.
The service launched in January 2018 with support for bitcoin and Etherum for users in a small number of states, with today’s announcement coming as an expansion into the Empire State. Support in New York brings the number of states now supported by the service to 39.
As CoinDesk noted, New York has been problematic for cryptocurrency exchanges because of the requirement to obtain a BitLicense. Launched in 2015, the Bitlicense has often been controversial in the bitcoin community because of its strict regulations relating to anti-money-laundering, anti-fraud and cybersecurity policies.
After initial pushback, it has slowly been adopted by companies wanting to trade cryptocurrencies in the state. Robinhood obtained a BitLicense in January, the 17th company to do so.
At launch, New York customers will have access to zero-fee trading in bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin SV, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Litecoin and Dogecoin.
The news comes as the price of bitcoin continues on a perpetual roller coaster. The cryptocurrency entered the week having suffered a 21% price drop at the weekend before recovering again, sitting at $7,940.11 at 10:50 p.m. EDT Sunday, May 19.
During the week, bitcoin peaked at $8221.26 May 20 before dropping to a low of $7,589.65 earlier today before recovering to $7,848.44 as of 10 p.m. EDT.
The price volatility has the cryptocurrency press completely confused. As bitcoin heads down, headlines emerge suggesting a bear market or even a crash. Then as bitcoin’s price rises, there’s talk of a bull run that may see bitcoin surge through $10,000. One report claimed bitcoin’s price is forming a symmetrical triangle, a pattern that allegedly proves price growth ahead.
Whatever the reason for the volatility, it has been a wild ride, one that shouldn’t be flippantly dismissed either. A 1% move in bitcoin’s price, based on its current market cap, is a move of $1.39 billion in value.
Photo: Robinhood
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