The future of finance will be defined by convenience. The companies that lead the charge will offer their customers more features and options than their competitors, providing a comprehensive experience that makes people want to use just one finance app.
Two companies building that experience are Robinhood Markets (HOOD +3.18%) and SoFi Technologies (SOFI +1.82%).
After strong runs in 2025, both stocks have fallen in 2026. Some may view that as a reason to steer clear, but for long-term investors with an extra $2,000 at this moment, these lower stock prices could offer a favorable buying opportunity.
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A growing subscriber base and a new revenue source
Robinhood offers convenience by letting its users invest not only in stocks, but also in options and cryptocurrency. Instead of having to use different exchanges for different purposes, many traders and investors can accomplish everything they need on Robinhood. To keep people on its platform beyond just investing, Robinhood also offers checking and savings accounts, debit cards, and retirement accounts.
One area it's moved into that could be a major revenue source for years to come is prediction markets. For the third quarter of 2025, the company said its prediction market annualized revenue surpassed $100 million, and it listed prediction markets as one of its top priorities for 2026 and beyond in its Q4 2025 earnings presentation.
NASDAQ: HOOD
Key Data Points
All of that has attracted more users. For Q4 2025, Robinhood reported 27 million funded customer accounts, a 1.8 million increase from the previous year. It's also attracting more people to its Robinhood Gold service, which generates recurring revenue through fees. The company had 4.2 million Robinhood Gold subscribers in Q4 2025, an increase of more than 1.5 million from the previous year.
That's the upside, but there are also risks to consider. With a beta of 2.4, the stock is more than twice as volatile as the broader market, so it is a bit of a roller-coaster ride in terms of price swings to stomach. It also faces regulatory scrutiny, cyclical crypto revenue cycles, and growing competition.
Still, there's a lot of upside if Robinhood can keep adding Gold subscribers, continue building out its prediction markets, and expand internationally.
Building a loop
SoFi and Robinhood share some similarities, but SoFi is focused more on a total financial experience. In addition to its investing platform, the fintech operator also offers personal loans, student loan refinancing, mortgages, credit cards, and checking and savings accounts. Those offerings are part of what SoFi calls its "financial services productivity loop," which has helped it rack up 13.7 million members.
As time has passed, SoFi has also built a more diversified array of revenue sources so that it is not overly reliant on one segment of its business. In 2021, fee-based revenue accounted for 26% of total revenue. In 2025, that jumped to 43%.
For the company's Q1 2026, which it expects to report on April 29, it anticipates roughly $1 billion in adjusted net revenue and $160 million in net income, both noticeable increases from the previous year. For all of 2026, SoFi forecasts $4.6 billion in net revenue and $825 million in net income, which would also be noticeable jumps from 2025.
NASDAQ: SOFI
Key Data Points
The outlook is promising, but SoFi has faced several issues in 2026 that have weighed on the stock price. Some of those issues have been broad, such as investors worrying that artificial intelligence will disrupt the financial industry. Other issues have been more specific, such as a report by short-selling investment firm Muddy Waters Research alleging that SoFi has a "material misstatement of at least $312 million of unrecorded debt."
It will have to navigate through those challenges, and like Robinhood, SoFi also has a high beta. The stock price will not move in a straight line higher, so there will be some valleys to deal with. That said, it's still a promising investment for long-term investors, as SoFi builds out that financial services loop to win over even more subscribers and generate more revenue.
