Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev's phone was seized by federal attorneys in one of the stock-trading app company's many legal battles, it revealed i

Feds seized Robinhood CEO's phone as part of GameStop trading probe

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2021-07-03 06:30:03

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev's phone was seized by federal attorneys in one of the stock-trading app company's many legal battles, it revealed in its IPO filing on Thursday.

In a section outlining legal risks from investigations and subpoenas, the company noted that "a related search warrant was executed by the USAO to obtain Mr. Tenev's cell phone." Here, "USAO" refers to the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California, which was investigating Robinhood's restrictions on trading during the meme stock flurry around GameStop and other stocks early this year.

The company faces or has faced dozens of proposed class-action lawsuits, as well as examinations or investigations by regulators, state attorneys general, the SEC, FINRA, and the U.S. Department of Justice. The SEC filing notes that the company has "become aware of approximately 50 putative class actions ... relating to the Early 2021 Trading Restrictions."

Robinhood restricted the purchase of "meme stocks" such as GameStop and AMC in January because the company did not have the capital required by regulators to cover the requested trading volume. The company ultimately tapped $500 million through its credit lines and raised $1 billion overnight in order to lift the trading restrictions.