Robinhood, the trading platform known for democratizing investing through commission-free trades and a sleek mobile experience, is making a major play to expand its footprint in the wealth management space. In a strategic move aimed at reshaping how retail investors — particularly younger and less affluent ones — engage with financial planning, Robinhood is launching two key services: Robinhood Strategies, a low-cost wealth management offering for smaller portfolios, and a referral program via its recently acquired platform, TradePMR, for higher net worth clients.
Together, these initiatives signal a direct challenge to the traditional RIA model, and position Robinhood as a formidable player across a wider spectrum of the investor landscape.
Robinhood Strategies: Democratizing Wealth Management
Robinhood Strategies is a new wealth management service designed for Gold subscribers and structured to be accessible even to those with modest investment accounts. With an annual fee of 0.25%, capped at just $250, it provides a low-cost, professionally managed portfolio experience at a fraction of the price charged by most RIAs or robo-advisors.
What truly sets this offering apart is the exceptionally low barrier to entry. Users with as little as $50 in investments can access diversified portfolios of ETFs designed by Robinhood’s in-house investment team. Once an investor crosses the $500 threshold, they gain access to portfolios that include individual stocks, offering greater potential for customization and performance.
This is a sharp contrast to traditional wealth management firms, where clients are often required to meet account minimums of $250,000 to $500,000 to access personalized investment advice or discretionary portfolio management. By removing these thresholds, Robinhood is opening the door to millions of retail investors who are typically underserved — or entirely excluded — by legacy financial institutions.
TradePMR: The Bridge To Traditional Wealth
While Robinhood Strategies targets the mass-affluent and emerging investor segment, its acquisition of TradePMR is a strategic counterweight that broadens its reach into the higher-net-worth market.
TradePMR is a custodial and technology platform built specifically for independent RIAs. It enables financial advisors to manage portfolios, execute trades and provide client reporting and compliance all in a single digital platform. Robinhood’s acquisition of TradePMR gives it a critical foothold in the RIA channel and with one of the fastest growing custodial providers in the space.
More importantly, Robinhood plans to launch a referral program through TradePMR that connects investors who meet traditional wealth management minimums with registered investment advisors using the platform. In effect, Robinhood is building a two-sided ecosystem: one that serves young or lower-asset investors directly through Robinhood Strategies, and another that funnels wealthier investors to vetted advisors via TradePMR.
This dual-pronged strategy creates a continuum of service that allows Robinhood to engage investors at nearly every stage of their financial journey.
This dual-pronged strategy creates a continuum of service that allows Robinhood to engage investors at nearly every stage of their financial journey — from a first $50 deposit to a seven-figure portfolio.
A Threat To Traditional RIAs
Robinhood’s moves come at a time when traditional RIAs face mounting challenges in engaging the next generation of clients. Many firms are still heavily reliant on baby boomer clients and have been slow to develop strategies for reaching millennials and Gen Z investors. These younger cohorts, often still in the wealth accumulation phase, are typically turned away due to high account minimums or the perceived inefficiency of servicing small accounts.
This creates a significant vulnerability — intergenerational wealth transfer.
Cerulli estimates that $105 trillion will pass to heirs through 2048. Advisors who fail to build relationships with the heirs of their current clients are at risk of losing those assets when they transition. Robinhood’s new offerings position the company to step in as the financial home for that next generation.
Even more concerning for traditional advisors is that Robinhood is not just acquiring customers, it is shaping their financial behaviors and expectations from the outset. The platform’s intuitive interface, low fees and emphasis on education have already fostered a loyal user base of 25.6 million funded accounts as of February 2025. Now, with Robinhood Strategies, the platform is embedding itself deeper into users’ financial planning, asset allocation and long-term investment strategies.
RIAs that lack a scalable solution for engaging young investors will struggle to compete with Robinhood’s increasingly comprehensive platform.
Technology-Driven Disruption
Robinhood’s advantages aren’t just pricing and accessibility — technology is another. The company has built its brand on delivering a fast, frictionless and mobile-first experience. This is a sharp contrast to the often clunky and fragmented tech stacks used by many advisory firms.
The company is effectively closing the technology gap between traditional advisors and digital-native investors.
By leveraging TradePMR’s advisor-centric technology and combining it with Robinhood’s sleek user experience, the company is effectively closing the technology gap between traditional advisors and digital-native investors. This convergence enables a new kind of wealth management experience — one that blends human expertise with digital efficiency.
For advisors on the TradePMR platform, this could prove to be a huge win. They’ll gain access to a steady stream of referred investors who are already financially engaged, tech-savvy and more comfortable managing money online. And with Robinhood handling the client acquisition and onboarding, advisors can focus on delivering personalized advice and deeper client relationships.
What It Means For The Future Of Wealth Management
Robinhood’s dual strategy — serving both small and large investors — represents a paradigm shift in how wealth management services are delivered and consumed.
In the short term, it will pressure RIAs to rethink their client acquisition strategies, especially regarding younger investors. Over the longer term, Robinhood could become a comprehensive financial platform, rivaling incumbents like Schwab, Fidelity and Vanguard — not just in retail trading, but in financial planning, portfolio management and advisory services.
Robinhood’s dual strategy — serving both small and large investors — represents a paradigm shift.
It also underscores a broader industry trend: the consumerization of financial services. As investors grow accustomed to seamless digital experiences in every other aspect of their lives, they are demanding the same from their wealth managers. Robinhood, with its roots in user-friendly tech and mass-market appeal, is better positioned than most to deliver on those expectations.
John O’Connell is Founder and CEO of The Oasis Group, a consultancy for the wealth management industry serving wealth management and technology firms.
