Robinhood hit with second probe over misleading crypto marketing

The trading platform is facing mounting regulatory pressure, landing under the microscope of another watchdog just days after a separate investigation.

According to a Thursday press release, the Florida Attorney General’s office has launched an investigation into Robinhood’s cryptocurrency business. 

Central to the probe are allegations that the company used deceptive marketing tactics to mislead users about trading costs, “falsely promoting” its trading platform as the “least expensive way to purchase crypto.” 

Authorities spotlighted Robinhood’s payment-for-order-flow (PFOF) model. Instead of charging users trading fees, Robinhood routes orders to third-party market makers, who pay the platform for the right to fill those trades. 

While this model enables commission-free trading on the surface, the AG’s office argues that it may result in less favorable execution prices for customers, making it more expensive overall than rival platforms offering all-in pricing.

“Robinhood has long claimed to be the best bargain, but we believe those representations were deceptive,” said Attorney General James Uthmeier in the statement, emphasizing that investors deserve full transparency when buying and selling digital assets.

Uthmeier also noted that “crypto is a vital component of Florida’s financial future,” and framed the enforcement action as aligned with President Trump’s broader push to advance the U.S. crypto market.

As part of the probe, the AG’s office has issued a subpoena demanding Robinhood to turn over marketing materials, internal communications, pricing data, user disclosures, and employee records related to crypto operations in Florida. The company has until July 31 to comply.

The latest case marks the second major regulatory challenge for Robinhood’s crypto unit in just over a week. Earlier, on July 7, 2025, European authorities launched a separate probe into Robinhood’s tokenized stock offerings after backlash from companies like OpenAI, which denied authorizing its shares to be marketed via the platform.

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev has since defended the tokenization model, saying it opens access to private equity markets and has attracted interest from more firms. Tenev also touted the firm’s compliance practices, pointing to ongoing talks with regulators in the US and other markets as the firm looks to expand access to its new offerings.

However, with regulators now circling, Robinhood faces mounting scrutiny that could complicate its expansion plans.