Robinhood Markets confirmed Wednesday reports of it submitting a confidential filing for an initial public offering with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The company statement confirmed an earlier report made by Bloomberg about what could be one of the most highly anticipated listings this year.
Sources familiar with the matter said that Robinhood could go public within the second quarter but the timing could change depending on the market conditions.
In its initial report, Bloomberg said that Robinhood was planning to list its shares on the Nasdaq. Robinhood said that it has yet to set terms for its stock market debut. The company has also not yet confirmed any other details apart from its confidential filing.
A report from Axios said that Robinhood could go for direct listing instead of a traditional IPO. However, the report disclaimed that it could go either way as the plan is still being finalized.
Robinhood's trading platform recently had a major increase in users as the app became immensely popular during the coronavirus pandemic. The app became particularly popular amongst younger traders who were looking to trade to pass the time and make money.
The increased popularity of the company's trading platform during the global health crisis had caught the attention of politicians and regulators. In one lawsuit, the company was accused of "gamifying" stock trading. It was also accused of misleading customers about its hidden fees.
Robinhood was also caught in the middle of the recent internet-driven stock frenzy that was led by the Wallstreetbets subreddit. The company was publicly criticized for shutting down the trading of some stocks involved in the frenzy like AMC Entertainment and GameStop.
Robinhood later clarified that it was forced to shut down the trading of those stocks due to problems with collateral requirements from its clearinghouse. The company later launched a funding round, raising billions of dollars from backers to ensure that it does not experience the same liquidity issues.
Despite facing increased scrutiny, Robinhood has continued to grow in terms of its users and profits. According to Axios, Robinhood's app was downloaded more than 1.4 million times in just three days back in January at the height of the "meme" stock frenzy.
