By Hannah Erin Lang and Imani Moise
It is invitation only, made of actual platinum and might weigh more than the rest of your wallet. Robinhood Markets is rolling out a premium credit card with a new generation of big spenders in mind.
The new card is part of Robinhood's effort to transform itself from a trading firm with meme-stock origins into a "financial super-app" that offers all kinds of services, from prediction-market bets to retirement accounts. In short: It is trying to grow alongside its customers, many of whom are now well into their 30s.
"We want to serve all customers, from novice investors to the super-sophisticated," Shiv Verma, Robinhood's chief financial officer, said in an interview.
Called "actual" in a nod to its 99.9% platinum makeup -- and an apparent dig at its competitors -- Robinhood's card looks a lot like other premium cards on the market. It charges a $695 annual fee and comes with a long list of perks, including 5% cash back on dining, 5% back on flights and 10% cash back on hotels. There is also a $250 annual credit for rides in autonomous vehicles.
American Express' Platinum card charges an annual fee of $895, while the Chase Sapphire Reserve charges $795.
It remains to be seen whether Robinhood can break into the crowded market of ultra-luxe cards. Card issuers have dangled increasingly rich rewards and travel perks to court the affluent, who are coveted because they are willing to pay hefty annual fees, spend a lot and are less likely to default. But the market is relatively limited: Less than 15% of credit-card holders pay an annual fee above $250, according to Bank of America.
For cardholders, figuring out which card offers the best value can be tricky, and often depends on lifestyle factors like how often people travel or dine out. As issuers have advertised more perks, redeeming them has also grown more complex, making the true value harder to gauge for many cardholders.
Online critics have already noted that some benefits on Robinhood's new card might look less impressive on a second glance. Its $250 annual DoorDash credit, for example, can only be applied as a $10 discount on orders that cost $50 or more. To receive the complimentary membership for health-tracking service Oura, cardholders will still need to buy an Oura ring within six months of opting in to the benefit, according to the card's benefits overview.
And if you add other users on your credit card, the "actual platinum" promise isn't automatic. According to Robinhood's website, authorized users receive a stainless-steel card at no cost -- and can upgrade to the platinum version for a fee.
The bar for impressing cardholders might be getting higher too, given the intensifying competition in recent years. Like many other premium cards, Robinhood's offers airport lounge access through Priority Pass. But the perk has lost some of its luster as overcrowding and restrictions at participating lounges have made entry less reliable.
The platinum card is being rolled out to select customers for now, executives said. The company's earlier credit card introduced in 2024, the Gold card, requires users to have a Robinhood account and hold a Robinhood Gold membership, which costs $5 a month.
Still, Robinhood may have an advantage with its brokerage customers, who tend to be highly engaged and frequently check the app to track their investments.
To get users more engaged, credit-card issuers have added features like credit-score monitoring and rewards trackers to their apps. But most people still use banking apps primarily for occasional tasks like transferring money or paying bills, instead of making them part of a daily routine, according to Javelin Strategy & Research.
"Integrating with their mobile app is certainly the right strategy, as they address their mobile-first base of young and tech-savvy clients," said Brian Riley, co-head of payments at Javelin.
Robinhood said it decided to roll out a more luxury card offering after wealthier customers kept requesting higher spending limits on its Gold card -- and one high-wheeling cardholder tried to use it to purchase a satellite.
The new card was unveiled at a splashy event Wednesday at the TWA Hotel near New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. Attendees could try out a flight simulator, take a stroll through the hotel's plane-turned-cocktail-lounge and get their Robinhood "passports" stamped at various stations.
Chief Executive Officer Vlad Tenev appeared in a pilot's uniform, featuring a pin with the company's feather logo.
"It's annoyingly heavy," Tenev said at one point, flashing his silvery card. "Which is exactly how our Platinum members are going to love it."
Write to Hannah Erin Lang at hannaherin.lang@wsj.com and Imani Moise at imani.moise@wsj.com
Watch: Robinhood's CEO on How He Plans to Keep the Company Profitable
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 06, 2026 17:11 ET (22:11 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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