FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried bought a 7.6% stake in stock and cryptocurrency trading platform Robinhood, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. After the transaction was announced, Robinhood’s stock jumped more than 30%. The trading price was $8.56 per share.
According to the SEC filing, FTX CEO Bankman-Fried acquired around 56 million shares of Robinhood through a business called Emergent Fidelity Technologies, which involved a total investment of nearly $600 million. Robinhood shares had reached an all-time low of $7.71 only hours before news of investment hit the company.
Since Its peak at $55 just after the IPO in July, the stocks declined steadily. The company’s sales dropped 18% in the first quarter of 2022. It eliminated 9% of its workforce three weeks ago, citing the company’s weak growth on a global downturn in casual investment activity.
However, one section of Robinhood, crypto trading, saw an increase in the same quarterly report. The first quarter of this year saw a 13% growth in cryptocurrency trading income. Last month, Robinhood added Polygon, Solana, Compound, and Shiba Inu to its crypto offerings.
According to FTX CEO investing in Robinhood was an appealing investment, and he has no ambitions to change or impact the company’s future.
