California-based fintech Robinhood has officially landed in Canada after closing its acquisition of WonderFi, one of the country’s biggest crypto platform operators.
The deal brings Robinhood’s international customer base past 1 million funded accounts, with roughly 300,000 of those coming over from WonderFi. The company’s two well-known Canadian crypto platforms, Bitbuy and Coinsquare, will be folded into the Robinhood brand.
“Robinhood has officially arrived in Canada. We’ve closed our acquisition of WonderFi, marking our entry into Canada through one of the most well-respected crypto platforms in the country. With 1 million international funded customers, Robinhood’s mission is going global,” said Vlad Tenev, CEO of Robinhood.
For Canadian users, that means the main Robinhood app is coming, with a flat 0.5% fee per CAD trade. Robinhood says it also plans to keep WonderFi’s existing institutional relationships intact and tie them into its global network through Bitstamp.
On the staffing side, WonderFi’s employees will join more than 240 Robinhood staff already working in Canada. The company set up its Canadian headquarters in Toronto back in 2024 as an engineering hub, so this isn’t exactly a cold entry into the market.
Johann Kerbrat, SVP and General Manager of Robinhood Crypto and International, said the acquisition puts Robinhood in a strong position to move fast in Canada. “WonderFi has extensive experience operating regulated crypto platforms that serve beginner and advanced crypto users alike, making it an ideal partner to accelerate Robinhood’s mission in Canada,” he said.
For now, it looks like only crypto trading will be available at launch, but many people are looking for support to trade stocks and more.
As for Coinsquare customers? An email sent to customers obtained by iPhone in Canada explains, “In the coming weeks, we’ll invite you via email to transition to the Robinhood app. You’ll also get a prompt in the Coinsquare app. While your user experience is transitioning to the Robinhood Canada Platform, your account will still operate under Coinsquare Capital Markets Ltd., a registered member of the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO).”
What does this mean for Canadians? More competition and choice is always a good thing. For now, Wealthsimple remains the dominant fintech in Canada, but now that Robinhood is here, it will push both companies to be even better to win over customers.
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