Robinhood (HOOD) and Coinbase (COIN) closed the week higher after U.S. regulators signaled a more permissive stance on crypto derivatives, with Robinhood leading the gains.
Robinhood shares jumped roughly 11% on Friday to close near $94, the highest level for the stock since February. Coinbase rose about 7%, finishing around $189 — roughly midrange of the $160–$215 consolidation band it has traded in since late March.
The catalyst was action by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The agency said it would permit U.S. firms to offer perpetual futures (perps), opening the door for new product launches and expanded onshore trading of instruments that have largely traded offshore. The CFTC also issued a no-action letter to Coinbase that allows the exchange’s U.S. customers access to options and perpetuals the company already offers elsewhere.
The regulatory shift has implications beyond Coinbase. Other U.S.-based platforms, including Gemini and Robinhood, signaled interest in launching perpetual futures; Robinhood already offers perps in Europe. Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev described the development as a “massive market opportunity,” noting that U.S. firms could capture trading volume that previously flowed to offshore venues.
Analysts responded with higher valuations for Robinhood. Mizuho raised its price target from $110 to $115, while Citizens reiterated a “market outperform” rating and kept a $155 target. Part of the bullish view reflects Robinhood’s roadmap for new features: the company plans to let customers connect AI agents to their accounts for trading and for credit card purchases. Initially, users will be able to direct AI agents to trade equities in a separate account with user-set limits; support for options, event contracts, futures and additional products is expected later.
The stock’s technical picture showed an upward trend through the week, reflecting the positive reaction to the regulatory news and evolving product plans.
In short, the CFTC’s permissive guidance on perpetual futures and its no-action letter to Coinbase sparked a rally across U.S. crypto-focused brokers and exchanges, highlighting a potential shift of derivatives trading back to domestic venues and prompting analysts to reassess upside for firms like Robinhood and Coinbase.
Image and chart references: a daily HOOD price chart showed the recent upward trend; featured image was created with OpenArt and the chart source was TradingView.