1. AI Driving 24/7 Trading
· Robinhood has launched blockchain-based tokenised trading for over 200 U.S. stocks and ETFs in Europe, targeting instant settlement and true 24/7 market access. Dividends pass through to token holders, though voting rights remain with Robinhood for now. The firm plans to expand this model to include tokenised shares of private companies like SpaceX and OpenAI—assets typically out of reach for everyday investors.
· By deploying tokenised stocks on Arbitrum (an Ethereum Layer 2) and developing its own proprietary blockchain, Robinhood aims to move to real-time settlement, redefining global stock market infrastructure and access in the process.
· Kraken is taking a different path. It’s exploring tokenised stocks on the Solana blockchain, seeking self-custody as well as instant settlement. The claim is this will radically improve liquidity and asset portability but faces more complex regulatory challenges under securities laws and investor protection rules.
· Meanwhile, ClearToken supports real-time tokenised markets but stresses that tokenised equities must remain tied to central clearing to manage systemic risk. They caution that purely peer-to-peer settlement could fragment market oversight and risk management.
· Further reading:
2. AI & Machine Learning Take Over Institutional Investing
· AI is becoming standard across asset management and hedge funds, with 86% of firms integrating it into research, trading, and operations:
· Bridgewater has launched a $2 billion fund led by machine learning models.
· Balyasny reports its proprietary AI outperforms OpenAI in financial analysis tasks.
· Morningstar research is now freely accessible via Perplexity Finance, reducing reliance on expensive platforms like Bloomberg; investor Jordi Visser shifted 60% of his workflow to Perplexity.
· Schroders’ proprietary Model Context Protocol (MCP) acts as a “USB port for AI,” seamlessly connecting multiple tools and datasets. It accelerates research, broadens idea generation, and helps monitor portfolios. For example, if a company’s returns fall sharply, AI can quickly identify whether the cause is cyclical, competitive, or operational.
3. Europe Expands AI Infrastructure
· Europe is ramping up AI investment to compete globally:
· At GTC Paris, Nvidia announced major partnerships across Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and the UK, including a German AI cloud hub with 10,000 GPUs. Clients include BMW, Siemens, and Novo Nordisk.
· The European Commission disclosed 76 bids to build “AI gigafactories” across 16 EU states, backed by €20 billion in funding.
· These efforts are crucial for latency-sensitive AI workloads like quant trading and large-scale backtesting while ensuring data sovereignty under European regulations.
· Read more: Reuters on Europe’s gigafactory bids
4. Tradeweb Pushes AI and Blockchain in Private and EM Markets
· Tradeweb’s Enrico Bruni has reaffirmed the firm’s investment in AI and blockchain to improve trading in private credit and emerging markets. Tradeweb, with daily volumes exceeding $2.2 trillion in 2024, is leveraging tech innovation and acquisitions to stay ahead.
5. EU AI Act back on Track & US Senate Pushes Back
The regulatory landscape remains highly active on both sides of the Atlantic:
· The European Commission has confirmed the EU AI Act will proceed as planned:
§ Rules for general-purpose AI (GPAI) take effect in August 2025.
§ High-risk AI system regulations follow in August 2026.
Despite appeals from 46 major tech CEOs to delay implementation, Brussels has refused, signalling that firms must fast-track AI governance, model auditability, and risk management preparations.
· In the U.S., legislative momentum has been mixed:
o A bipartisan draft bill is still under discussion, proposing regulatory carve-outs for certain AI innovations while maintaining oversight of high-risk applications—potentially easing compliance for financial firms developing proprietary AI tools.
o Separately, the U.S. Senate delivered a significant blow to a controversial federal AI proposal, voting 99–1 to remove language from a major appropriations bill that would have blocked states from regulating AI for up to 10 years. The move preserves state-level authority and reflects deep bipartisan concern about unchecked AI growth and the importance of states’ rights. (The Verge, AP News, Axios).
· This divergence means European firms must prepare for strict, harmonised rules, while U.S. firms face a patchwork of state and federal requirements as AI oversight evolves.
· Further reading:
As always, thank you for reading! Let me know what you found helpful, what you disagreed with — and what you’d like to see more of.
Many thanks,
Rebecca–
