US neobroker Robinhood (NASDAQ:HOOD) has announced the launch of presidential election event contracts, ahead of the November 5 US general election. The contracts will be offered by its Robinhood Derivatives, LLC (RHD) unit.
Event contracts allow customers to trade on the outcome of specific events, such as whether a candidate will win an election.
Robinhood’s presidential election event contracts will begin rolling out to a limited number of customers today. Customers must apply and meet certain criteria to be approved for a RHD account, including being a U.S. citizen. Once approved, customers will be able to trade based on their prediction for “who will win the 2024 presidential election.”
There will be two contracts to choose from–one for Kamala Harris and one for Donald Trump.
Robinhood said that it has heard from customers that having access to the market in real time is essential – it’s why, for example, Robinhood launched 24/5 trading and recently announced plans to launch futures trading in the coming months. The company said it believes event contracts give people a tool to engage in real-time decision-making, unlocking a new asset class that democratizes access to events as they unfold.
US Presidential Election event contracts on Robinhood will be tradeable Monday, October 28 and Tuesday, October 29 from 8 a.m. ET – 8 p.m. ET; on Wednesday, October 30 and Thursday, October 31 from 8 a.m. ET – 1 a.m. ET; on November 1st, 8 a.m. ET – 10:30 p.m. ET. There will be virtually 24 hour trading the week of the election, starting Sunday, November 3 at 3 a.m. ET to Friday, November 8 at 5 p.m. ET. There will be no trading from 5 p.m. ET – 5:15 p.m. ET each day, and contracts will not be tradeable on Saturdays. The price of the contract will be between $0.02 – $0.99, and as the election nears conclusion, one contract will get close to (or at) 100% and will pay out $1, while the other will get close to (or at) 0% and will pay out $0.
To be eligible, customers must apply and be approved for a Robinhood Derivatives account. The event contract is offered by Robinhood Derivatives, LLC through ForecastEx, LLC.
