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TD Ameritrade Trolls RobinhoodTD Ameritrade Trolls Robinhood

With market volatility ramping up, Robinhood is suddenly having trouble with its trading platform.

Samuel Steinberger, Senior Technology Editor

December 13, 2018

1 Min Read
emojis
Nusha777/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Co-CEO Vlad Tenev may be eating his words. After taking a dig at discount brokerages, saying they “aren’t really technology companies” at a conference this summer, TD Ameritrade’s social media account was trolling Robinhood after the zero-commission trading platform deactivated accounts and stopped options trading earlier today. Angry users lambasted Robinhood’s customer support account on social media and TD Ameritrade’s social media account got into the fray with laughing emojis and messages on pricing.

Robinhood’s had a rough time of late, facing problems as it transitions its clearing business away from Apex Clearing and onto its homemade system. Dividends were delayed for some investors in November, leading FINRA’s social media account to comment on threads from Robinhood’s support account. With today’s trouble, Robinhood noted that it’s “continuing to monitor the issue from this morning” and that options trading was reopened for most accounts by the time the markets closed.

It’s not the kind of attention Robinhood wants. The trading platform has plans for an IPO and recently hired a new CFO from Amazon and a head of operations from Google’s growth capital fund, CapitalG.

Update: TD Ameritrade has since deleted its tweets. 

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About the Author

Samuel Steinberger

Senior Technology Editor, WealthManagement.com

Samuel Steinberger is Senior Technology Editor for Informa Connect’s WealthManagement.com. In his role, Mr. Steinberger provides the publication’s wealth and financial technology coverage. 

Mr. Steinberger’s editorial insight and familiarity with technology accelerates Informa’s growth within the financial advisor and wealth management communities, providing in-depth news for advisors and financial professionals. 

Before joining Informa Connect, Mr. Steinberger produced documentaries with former CNN anchor Soledad O’Brien at Soledad O’Brien Productions (formerly Starfish Media Group). He specialized in research, shooting and editing, as well as finding distinct voices to explain topics like mental health, poverty and racial divide. 

Prior to joining Soledad O’Brien Productions, Mr. Steinberger managed multi-departmental technology projects for global legal technology leader Transperfect Legal Solutions. After obtaining his graduate degree in journalism from Columbia University, he completed his transition from technology management to media. 

Mr. Steinberger is an award-winning journalist, author and researcher who has written, edited and reported for a number of publications, including The New York Times, Financial PlanningAmerican Banker and PBS. He is founder of beverages publication Give Me Weird Drinks

Mr. Steinberger’s technology analysis and insight has been featured in several books on virtual and augmented reality. Mr. Steinberger has received awards and recognition for his reporting and research, including the American Business Media's prestigious Jesse H. Neal Award for editorial excellence.

Follow on Twitter: @slsteinberger