Robinhood plans to offer weekend trading for equities in US markets

Robinhood just told Wall Street that weekends are no longer sacred. At its HOOD Summit in Houston, the company announced plans to offer weekend equities trading for a curated list of US stocks and ETFs, something no modern American brokerage has done before.

How it works

Weekend orders will be routed through Bruce ATS, an alternative trading system operated by Bruce Markets. Robinhood and PEAK6 Investments are majority owners of Bruce Markets, giving the brokerage direct influence over the infrastructure powering the new sessions.

The initial rollout will cover a curated selection of stocks and ETFs rather than the full universe of listed securities.

No specific launch date has been announced. The feature still needs regulatory approval, and Robinhood has indicated it could arrive soon or early next year.

This isn’t Robinhood’s first push beyond traditional hours. The company launched its 24 Hour Market in 2023, which currently spans Sunday 8 p.m. ET through Friday 8 p.m. ET. The weekend trading plan fills the remaining gap in that schedule, effectively creating something approaching a seven-day market for participating securities.

The demand signal is already visible. On busy trading days, roughly 25% of daily volume on Robinhood’s 24 Hour Market comes from outside conventional market hours.

The bigger strategy

Weekend equities trading wasn’t the only announcement at HOOD Summit. Robinhood also revealed plans for AI-powered trading agents, earnings contracts through a new partnership with Cboe, and perpetual futures linked to select cryptocurrencies via its acquisition of the Bitstamp exchange.

Steve Quirk, a Robinhood executive, captured the rationale in a single line.

“Breaking news doesn’t wait for an opening bell.”

What this means for the industry

There are risks worth noting. Thinner weekend liquidity could mean wider spreads and more volatile price action on individual trades. Alternative trading systems don’t carry the same depth of order flow as primary exchanges during regular hours. Traders who aren’t careful about limit orders could find themselves paying more than expected for the privilege of trading on a Sunday.

The curated approach to the initial ticker list is likely Robinhood’s way of managing that risk, focusing on the most liquid names where spreads are less likely to balloon.

Disclosure: This article was edited by John Chen. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.