While Robin Hood from the tales of your childhood is stealing from rich in order to give to the poor and less fortunate, RobinHood exchange is said to be using personal data from its registered users making it into the biggest source of revenues for this exchange.
Once RobinHood was first launched as an exchange market for crypto assets, many have claimed that the exchange will get to become the next Coinbase, also referring to the fact that the user-friendly RobinHood application stands as one of the best in the market.
In addition to charging no fees for the trading of cryptocurrencies on this exchange market, RobinHood may seem like a rather tempting option for buying and selling of cryptocurrencies, offering customizable investment options, and a user-friendly interface within their easy-to-use Android app.
However, simple doesn’t always necessarily mean good.
Is RobinHood Exchange Earning Profit on Selling Personal Data?
Robinhood started out back in 2014, with a long waiting list of half million users waiting to be registered on the exchange. In addition, the exchange collected around 15 million dollars from different angel investors like Google Ventures, which further helped it create and design a smooth and sleek application that makes trading simple and near-instant.
Although the main idea behind the exchange is to democratize trading and make individual trading simple, feeless, and sleek, many people doubt in the safety of having the exchange working only as a mobile online stock market.
Moreover, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission, RobinHood exchange, or otherwise known as RobinHood Financial, is making a fortune from selling users’ personal data to different high-frequency trading companies.
In accordance with SEC, RobinHood is said to be selling information regarding the trading preferences of their registered users, allegedly charging the high-frequency companies almost 10 times more than similar services.
So, although the exchange claims that they “cut the fat” that makes other brokerage services charge large fees in oppose to zero fees on RobinHood, it seems that the exchange is not that ethical at all since the revelation that SEC made regarding the alleged revenue source of the mentioned exchange – selling of personal data from registered users.
Although some users might not feel jeopardized by this fact, possibly seduced by the sleekness of RobinHood mobile exchange service and no-fees policy, the selling of users’ data can in no way be a safe side-effect.
If the fact that your personal data which includes detailed information about your preferred sales are being sold to third parties doesn’t make you feel uncomfortable and unwillingly exposed, then the fact that the majority of companies that RobinHood is selling customer’s personal data to is actually penalized by the Securities and Exchange Commission will probably make you feel like there are some issues about the mentioned exchange.
One of such companies was actually penalized by SEC during the last year, having to pay over 20 million dollars for the charge of providing misleading information, which is categorized under fraudulent activities.
Are zero fees on RobinHood worth the exposure of having personal data from registered customers being sold to third party companies?
Keywords: RobinHood Trading Review: How does Robinhood make money, Is Robinhood safe, Is my money safe with Robinhood
