Robinhood Plans to Launch Perpetual Futures and Weekend Stock Trading in the US

WHY IT MATTERS

Perpetual futures, or "perps," are a type of trading contract that lets people bet on whether an asset's price will go up or down without actually owning the asset. Think of it like making a wager on the future price of something, except unlike a traditional futures contract that expires on a set date, perps can be held indefinitely. These contracts have been very popular on crypto exchanges outside the US but have been difficult for American users to access through regulated platforms. Robinhood offering these products could make this type of trading more accessible to everyday US users, though derivatives like perps carry significant risk because they often involve leverage, meaning traders can lose more than their initial amount. Weekend stock trading is also notable because traditional stock markets in the US are only open on weekdays during set hours, so this would give users more flexibility in when they trade.