Robinhood restricted cryptocurrency trading on Friday as the price of Bitcoin and a meme-inspired token spiked.
Users reported that earlier in the day the trading app stopped instant deposits for crypto purchases, which meant they could only buy the currencies with funds already deposited in their accounts. Such deposits can take up to five business days, Robinhood said.
“Due to exceptional market conditions, we have temporarily turned off instant purchasing power for crypto,” a Robinhood spokesman said in a statement emailed to CNBC.
“Customers can continue to buy crypto with funds settled. We will continue to monitor market conditions and communicate with our customers.”
The investment platform was mocked a lot by customers Thursday after it was prevented from buying GameStop and other stocks popular with retailers. Stocks like this have been the subject of wildly volatile price swings this week due to a host of investors inspired by Reddit board member WallStreetBets.
Robinhood’s attempt to restrict crypto trading comes after dogecoin, a digital coin based on the popular “doge” meme that rose up to 800% on Friday. The cryptocurrency was originally started as a joke, but has found some traction since then.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin also rose sharply on Friday after Tesla CEO Elon Musk changed his Twitter bio to #bitcoin. “In retrospect, it was inevitable,” the billionaire said in a cryptic tweet.
