Robinhood's Prediction Markets Soar on World Cup Frenzy

Rising to the challenge of its earnings report, Robinhood's stock price gained 1% early Thursday. The financial app's prediction markets platform is now its second-largest trading business, thanks in part to a World Cup-fueled surge.

The company generated $156 million in fees from prediction markets during the quarter, up 50% from the previous period. This revenue stream surpassed transaction fees earned from stock and crypto trading, which came in at $129 million and $100 million, respectively.

CFO Shiv Verma noted that nearly 2 million people have now used Robinhood's prediction markets, a figure up from around 1.5 million at the company's previous update. Prediction-market customers are also more likely to hold a Robinhood retirement account, he added.

CEO Vlad Tenev described the World Cup as 'a proof of concept' for Rothera, the regulated exchange and clearinghouse that Robinhood launched with Susquehanna International Group. The company is looking to scale Rothera rapidly and make it a bigger player in the market.