How to buy Robinhood (HOOD) stock from India

Yes, an Indian resident can buy Robinhood — legally, in US dollars, under the RBI's Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS). HOOD trades on NASDAQ. It pays no dividend. Robinhood is the US retail brokerage that democratised commission-free trading — it earns from payment for order flow, crypto transaction revenue, margin lending, and its Robinhood Gold subscription service. In a bull market with active retail participation, HOOD benefits from elevated trading volumes across equities, options, and crypto. It is a fintech platform bet, not a pure crypto play.

The 30-second version

• Legal and simple. Buy HOOD via Vested, INDmoney, or Interactive Brokers India.
• No dividend. No US withholding or Form 44 complexity.
• India tax: hold more than 24 months → 12.5% LTCG; shorter hold → slab rate. Section 112.
• Estate-tax trap: US-situs asset — above $60,000 of total US-situs assets, up to 40% US estate tax, no treaty relief.
• The positioning: HOOD is a retail brokerage cyclical — revenue rises with market activity and crypto sentiment, falls in quiet markets. It is not a direct crypto play (COIN is purer) and not a diversified financial (SCHW is more defensive). HOOD is a bet on retail investor participation staying elevated — options trading growth, crypto adoption, and Robinhood Gold subscription penetration.

Quick facts

Can an Indian resident buy it?	Yes — fully legal under the LRS
Ticker / exchange	HOOD / NASDAQ
How	Vested, INDmoney, Interactive Brokers India
Minimum	A fraction of one share
Dividend	None
India tax on gains	12.5% LTCG after 24 months; else your slab (Section 112)
Estate-tax risk	US-situs above $60k → up to 40%, no treaty relief
Annual compliance	Schedule FA every year you hold

How to buy it — 3 steps

1. Open an account and finish KYC. Vested or INDmoney for simplicity; IBKR India for larger positions.
2. Fund via the LRS. Cap: $250,000/year. 20% TCS above ₹7 lakh — creditable against income tax.
3. Place the order. HOOD has good liquidity as a mid-large cap NASDAQ stock. Market orders work fine. HOOD's stock price is correlated to retail trading activity — it moves significantly around earnings when trading volume data is disclosed.

What Robinhood actually is

Revenue streams:

• Transaction-based revenue (PFOF + crypto): Robinhood earns from routing equity and options orders to market makers (payment for order flow) and acts as principal on crypto trades. Options PFOF has grown significantly as retail options participation increased.
• Net interest revenue: Interest on margin lending, cash management accounts, and uninvested customer cash balances. This stream grows with interest rates.
• Robinhood Gold: A subscription service (~$5–6/month) offering higher interest on cash, larger instant deposit limits, and Morningstar research. Subscriber count growth is a key metric.

Crypto context: In a crypto bull market, Robinhood's crypto transaction revenue (it earns the bid-ask spread on crypto trades) rises materially. In bear markets, crypto revenue falls. Crypto is meaningful but not the dominant revenue driver — net interest and options PFOF are comparable contributors.

Robinhood Gold Card: HOOD launched a credit card for Gold subscribers with 3% cashback — a product that deepens customer engagement and increases switching costs.

International expansion: Robinhood has expanded to the UK and EU, adding addressable market beyond the US retail base.

The tax that actually matters

Holding period	Treatment	Rate
24 months or less	Short-term	Your slab rate
More than 24 months	Long-term	12.5%, no indexation

Full rules: how US stocks are taxed in India.

The $60,000 estate-tax trap

Directly-held HOOD is a US-situs asset. Above $60,000 of total US-situs holdings at death, US estate tax of up to 40% — no India-US treaty protection. See the estate-tax trap guide.

HOOD vs COIN vs IBIT — crypto-adjacent positioning

If you want…	Best route
Crypto exchange business model (purer play)	COIN (Coinbase)
US retail brokerage + crypto revenue blend	HOOD
Clean Bitcoin price exposure (no business risk)	IBIT
Full crypto exposure picture	Crypto and Bitcoin guide for Indian investors