Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt stepping down

Baiju Bhatt, Indian American Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Robinhood Markets is stepping down from his executive role at the investment platform after over ten years in leadership “to pursue other entrepreneurial interests.”

Bhatt will remain a member of Robinhood’s Board of Directors, the Menlo Park, California based company announced on March 21.

“Since I helped found this company in 2013, Robinhood has been my life. For more than a decade, I have worked tirelessly to drive our mission to democratize the financial services industry for the betterment of society,” said Bhatt. “It has been a privilege to work with some of the most dedicated, creative, and innovative people who have delivered daily for our customers and shareholders.”

READ: Thanks to stunning growth of Robinhood, Baiju Bhatt becomes latest Indian American billionaire (February 1, 2021)

“I look forward to remaining a member of the Robinhood Board of Directors and continuing to support our mission. I will have more to share about my next steps soon but know the future has never been so bright,” Bhatt added.

Paying tributes to Bhatt, Vlad Tenev, CEO and Co-Founder of Robinhood, stated, “Baiju and I have been co-founders for over 10 years and friends for over 20.”

“His passion for entrepreneurship and commitment to our mission to democratize finance for all helped build Robinhood from a seed of an idea to the global public company it is today.”

“Baiju played a pivotal role in opening access to the markets for millions of new investors, and I am grateful for all of his contributions to Robinhood over the last decade,” Tenev added.

Bhatt holds an 8% share of the company following its listing on the Nasdaq exchange in July 2021.

Robinhood launched in 2013 but it was during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 that the firm shot to prominence amid the explosion of interest in online trading. The company was also associated with the meme stock trading craze led by the ‘short squeeze’ on the stock of video games retailer GameStop in early 2021.

Bhatt is the son of Indian immigrants, Pragna and Praful Bhatt, and grew up in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. He is married to Adrienne Sussman and the couple have a son.

Bhatt has a bachelor’s degree in physics and a master’s in Mathematics from Stanford University.