Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev to face US House Committee as Regulators Demand Details Over GameStop Saga

By: Dickson Arinze

February 4, 2021 10:01 AM

Vlad Tenev CEO of Robinhood will have to testify before the U.S House Committee over the firms role in the volatile trading of GameStop stocks.

In a recent report by Politico, the Robinhood CEO is expected to attend a virtual hearing on Feb. 18 led by Representative Maxine Waters.

In an official announcement made by Maxine Waters which confirms the Financial Services Committee's plans to evaluate the GameStop short squeeze saga volatile nature of other stocks. The hearing will be centered on recent volatility issues involving GameStop.

The Robinhood’s GameStop saga started on Jan. 28 when the company suspended buying for GameStop stock and other shares that were allegedly pumped through the r/Wallstreetbets Reddit community. Robinhood subsequently restricted trading for as many as 50 stocks on Friday before narrowing the restrictions to eight stocks on Feb. 8. Still, Robinhood users are limited to just one GameStop share.

“I am concerned about whether or not Robinhood restricted the trading because there was collusion between Robinhood and some of the hedge funds that were involved with this,” Waters said.

The announcement did not specify what witnesses will participate in the hearing. Robinhood has not officially announced Tenev’s participation so far.

As previously reported, some U.S. regulators have already drawn attention to Robinhood’s handling the GameStop short squeeze.

On Jan. 29, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission hinted that it was looking at Robinhood’s issues with GameStop, expressing concern over “extreme price volatility of certain stocks’ trading prices.”

On Feb. 1, Robinhood’s Tenev discussed the firm’s move to restrict trading with Elon Musk on the audio chat app Clubhouse. Tenev reportedly said that the decision about restrictions was made by a clearinghouse and was based on the capital regulations.