A rival to Robinhood is encouraging users to ditch the stock trading app in favor of its own – and it’s tapping Michael Bolton to seal the deal.
Public – a New York-based startup looking to capitalize on Robinhood’s recent problems with regulators and clients alike – tweeted a video Tuesday of the disintegrated balladeer singing a version of his 1989 hit “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You?”
The new song, “How am I supposed to act without you?” follows a bitter end to the “Reddit Rally,” in which users accused Robinhood of fueling stocks of companies like GameStop and AMC Entertainment with surprising trade restrictions.
In the new lyrics, a straightforward Bolton delves into allegations that Robinhood is selling ‘order flow’ to major hedge funds like Citadel Investments whose financial stakes don’t match those of mom-and-pop investors.
“I almost couldn’t believe what I saw on Reddit today,” Bolton growls as a piano rings in the background. ‘I was hoping I would get it straight from you. They told me ‘about’ the order flow, ‘So I googled, now I know – I think I need to find someone new. “
“So tell me all about it – tell me who you sell my professions to,” Bolton jerks out, perched in a recording studio amid split stock footage of flaming roses, a shattered wine glass, and a man walking alone on a beach.
‘Tell me, how am I supposed to act without you? My shares have been in your app for so long. “
Public, which currently claims 1 million users versus Robinhood’s 13 million, allows clients to buy fractional stocks and ETFs. On Wednesday, Public said it had raised a new $ 220 million round of funding from existing investors.
The company also said that it is no longer dealing with order flow payments, and that it now routes its transactions directly to exchanges such as the New York Stock Exchange, while encouraging users to tip on their transactions.
“I think it’s time I should move on,” Bolton sings as he closes the field. “I’m going to transfer all my stuff and I’m gone!”