Crypto exchange Bitstamp has officially flipped its parent company Robinhood in monthly trading volumes, underscoring the growing importance of institutional-grade platforms in the evolving digital asset landscape.
According to Robinhood’s latest financial report published Thursday, Bitstamp posted $14.4 billion in crypto trading volume for August, marking a 21% month-over-month increase. By contrast, Robinhood’s own crypto division saw an 18% decline, processing just $13.7 billion in trades. It was the first time Bitstamp had surpassed Robinhood’s trading volumes since being acquired by the firm in June for $200 million.
Key trading volume figures for Robinhood over the last 12 months. Source: Robinhood
The data suggests Robinhood’s crypto momentum has slowed since its peak in late 2024, when it recorded record-breaking volumes, while Bitstamp has steadily grown its institutional and retail base. Robinhood’s acquisition of Bitstamp added more than 5,000 institutional clients and 50,000 retail customers, bolstering its presence in Europe and giving it a strategic foothold in the fast-growing real-world asset (RWA) tokenization market.
Combined performance and market conditions
Despite Bitstamp’s gains, combined crypto trading volumes across the two platforms dropped by 2.1% in August compared to July. Still, Robinhood’s overall assets under custody rose slightly by 2% to $304 billion, with crypto assets accounting for roughly $41 million.
Market-wide, August was relatively subdued. While total crypto trading volumes edged up slightly, digital asset prices ended the month almost flat. Ryan McMillin, CEO of Australian fund manager Merkle Tree Capital, suggested seasonality played a role in the slowdown, with North American trading activity dampened by the summer holiday period.
McMillin added that the market has been in a “quiet waiting phase,” with traders watching for signals on whether weakening inflation and jobs data will prompt the US Federal Reserve to finally cut interest rates. “Trump has been pushing for lower rates while Jerome Powell has dug his heels in — now that looks to have changed,” McMillin said.
CK Zheng, co-founder and CIO of ZX Squared Capital, echoed the sentiment, saying trading volumes are likely to pick up soon. Both Zheng and McMillin expect crypto to test new all-time highs before the year’s end, citing stronger institutional inflows via exchange-traded funds and Bitcoin and Ether treasury holdings.
Robinhood milestones and expansion
Robinhood also notched a major milestone this week, making its debut on the S&P 500 index. The move brought another crypto-active company into the world’s most-watched stock benchmark. “This movement expands the index’s exposure and connection to the digital asset economy,” said Edwin Mata, CEO of tokenization platform Brickken, as Robinhood shares jumped more than 16% on the day.
In parallel, Robinhood has been scaling its blockchain and derivatives offerings. In early July, the company launched a tokenization-focused layer-2 blockchain in the EU, giving European clients access to tokenized US stocks. It also introduced perpetual futures trading with up to 3x leverage, routing trades directly through Bitstamp.