Dive Brief:

• Newly appointed Robinhood CFO Shiv Verma’s current compensation includes an annual base salary of $500,000, a target bonus opportunity of 60% of his base salary, and an annual equity target of about $2.3 million, set to vest quarterly over a four-year period, the company said in a recent securities filing.
• Prior to taking the CFO seat on Feb. 6, Verma, 40, served as the investing and trading platform’s SVP of finance and strategy and treasurer since 2018, according to the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Menlo Park, California-based company first announced the CFO transition in November. Verma succeeds Jason Warnick, who stepped down from the CFO role effective Feb. 6 and will remain with the company in an advisor role until Sept. 1, according to the filing.
• Verma took the company’s top finance seat just days before the trading platform on Tuesday reported earnings results for its fourth quarter and full-year 2025 which missed expectations — causing its stock price to fall about 7% on the day, according to reports. The company’s stock is down about 38% year-to-date, according to data from NASDAQ.

Dive Insight:

As CFO, Verma appears poised to earn far less than his predecessor did in 2024, the latest year for which proxy materials are available. Warnick, who stepped down after seven years in the CFO chair, received total compensation of about $8.8 million in 2024 — including a base salary of $550,000 in salary and $6.7 million in stock awards, according to Robinhood’s most recent proxy report filed in April.

Shawn Cole, president of executive search firm Cowen partners, cautioned against comparing the two packages as one is forward-looking while the other is based on reported compensation, he said in an email. Verma’s pay package represents Robinhood’s current compensation program for an internal successor, comprised of a base salary, bonus and equity target, while “Warnick’s total reflects what was actually granted and reportable in that year, including one-time equity awards tied to retention or transition,” Cole told CFO Dive.

“I’d add that Robinhood should be moving from foundational build and retention economics (more equity) to a more standardized public-company compensation framework now that it is established,” Cole said.

Warnick, who helped shepherd the business through its 2021 initial public offering, also saw a dip in compensation from 2023 to 2024, with his total pay falling to $8.8 million in 2024 from $10.2 million in 2023, according to the proxy.

Verma has taken Robinhood’s finance reins as it continues a push toward sustainable growth, though an ongoing “crypto winter” is leading to declining trading volumes for digital assets. The “crypto winter” has seen valuations for cryptocurrencies fall by a collective $2 trillion, according to a report by The Economist.

Cryptocurrency revenues for Robinhood’s Q4 declined by 38% to $221 million, according to its earnings report. The trading platform also saw its net income drop to $605 million from $916 million in the prior year period, with Robinhood’s Q4 2024 net income including a $424 million benefit from a tax benefit and regulatory accrual reversal during the quarter.

Verma and fellow business leaders expressed optimism regarding the future of cryptocurrency during its earnings call, but also stressed the platform’s strategy of diversification.

The company also remains “long-term bullish” regarding cryptocurrency, Verma said on the call in response to analyst questions. However, “it’s important to remember, while we did close to $1 billion of crypto revenue last year, it was only 18% of our overall revenue,” he said.

In his first earnings call as CFO, Verma reiterated his belief in Robinhood’s strong growth, noting the company hit record figures for revenue, net deposits, and adjusted EBITDA, he said during its earnings call according to a transcript.

For the full year, net income reached $1.9 billion compared to $1.4 billion in the prior year period, while full-year adjusted EBITDA increased by 76% to $2.5 billion. In the coming year, Robinhood seeks to continue on its growth path, targeting continued gains in new product initiatives and net deposits, he said.

 “In 2026, we plan to ramp up our product velocity even faster, while delivering another year of profitable growth,” Verma said during the earnings call. “There is a massive opportunity in front of us, and we see the path to compound shareholder value for years to come.”