Robinhood event contracts
An event contract is a type of financial derivative that allows traders to speculate on the outcome of a specific event. These contracts are generally structured around Yes or No outcomes, and fluctuate in price based on the projected outcome of the event. Event contracts then pay out if the position held matches the correct outcome of the event; otherwise, they expire worthless.
Some contracts may not be available in every state or territory.
You must have a Robinhood Derivatives account in order to purchase event contracts through Robinhood. Review eligibility and application for details.
When you buy Yes contracts for an event, you’re selecting “yes” to the event question. When you buy No contracts for an event, you’re selecting "no" to the event question.
Lets say there’s a binary election between Candidate A and Candidate B. If you believe Candidate A will win the event, you could purchase Yes contacts for Candidate A. Depending on the contract, however, you may also be able to purchase No contracts for Candidate B, selecting the same outcome.
Each position is then closed by buying the opposite side of the same contract. For example, if you held 50 Yes contracts and you wished to close out of the entire position, you would sell this position, which is the same as buying 50 No contracts for the same contract.
For each event contract you’ll notice a Timeline of key dates on the event detail page. Once a contract becomes available to trade, the Timeline will show the following:
Exact processing times for payouts may vary. The payout date and the date funds are available for withdrawal are not the same. Proceeds from payouts will be available for withdrawal within 2 business days of the final trade or settlement date.
To buy an event contract:
To close a position:
Each contract is worth $1.00 upon settlement. However, the value of each Yes and No position for a contract may not always add up to $1.00 exactly. This can occur for multiple reasons. One reason is because the price displayed for each Yes or No position is the last trade price, rather than the bid or ask price. Another reason is because certain exchanges will embed a spread into the price of a contract. You can learn more about spreads in Fees and commissions.
All event contract orders will be submitted as marketable immediate or cancel (IOC) limit orders. We don’t offer stop or limit orders. Furthermore, these contracts trade on an open market at a regulated exchange, meaning there must be a market participant willing to take the opposite side of your order for your trade to execute. If your order is unable to be executed in a timely manner, it means that the exchange was unable to match and execute your order, or there is no one willing to participate in the opposite position. In the event your order is unable to execute, it will be canceled or rejected.
To purchase event contracts through Robinhood, you must apply for, and have an approved, Robinhood Derivatives account.
To be eligible to open a Robinhood Derivatives account, you must be a US citizen and have an open individual investing account with either:
To apply for a Robinhood Derivatives account:
Robinhood charges a $0.01 commission per contract bought or sold. There are no additional commissions or fees to hold your position until final cash settlement.
Depending on the exchange the contract is offered through, there will also either be an exchange fee, typically $0.01 per contract bought or sold, or a spread built into the price of the contract.
If there’s an exchange fee, then the exchange makes its money based on the fee charged to trade the contract.
If there’s a spread, then the price of a Yes position and a No position may add up to slightly more than $1.00, typically $1.01. The exchange makes its money based on the spread amount over $1.00 per contract offered.
The maximum profit you can make per contract is generally the difference between the contract price for the side you’re purchasing and $1.00 (minus any applicable fees and spreads).
Exchange fee: Let's say you buy a Yes contract trading at $0.47. The contract has a $0.01 exchange fee and a $0.01 Robinhood commission per contract traded. This makes your total cost per contract $0.49. If you hold the correct outcome, the total value of the contract is worth $1.00, which means you have a maximum potential profit of $0.51 per contract you hold ($1.00 - $0.49).
Spread: Let’s say you buy a Yes contract at a price of $0.60 per contract. The exchange that executes the orders embeds $0.01 within the price of the contract, so that the value of Yes and No sides add up to $1.01, and there are no exchange fees charged on this transaction. There is also a Robinhood commission of $0.01. This brings your total cost per contract to $0.61 ($0.60 + $0.01 commission). At settlement, the value of the correct contract side will be worth $1.00, which means your maximum potential profit is $0.39 per contract ($1.00 - $0.61).
Your Robinhood Derivatives account is funded through your investing account. However, the amount available for trading event contracts (known as your event contract buying power) may be slightly different from what you see in your investing account. This is because the buying power used to purchase derivatives is calculated differently. You can view your event contract buying power in Investing → Buying power.
With Instant Deposits, you may be able to instantly trade with a portion of a pending deposit.
However, Instant Deposits generally can't be used for highly volatile trades, so you may need to wait 2-4 business days for your deposits to settle before you can trade event contracts using these funds. You can still use Instant Deposits to trade stocks and ETFs.
If you’re having trouble with Instant Deposit access and you’d like to purchase event contracts, you can deposit funds via debit card funding (DCF) or by wire transfer.
If you request a full or partial account transfer (ACAT), from your Robinhood account to another brokerage firm, any event contract positions that you request to be transferred may be held until expiration, when the funds are fully paid out, then swept to your other account as part of the transfer.
Trading hours may vary depending on the event contract. You can see the trading hours of each contract on the Timeline within the event detail page.
Liquidity and volatility can be more dramatic than traditional equities markets, which might affect whether your orders get filled. With these fluctuations, you might see more order cancellations or rejections if the price you enter can’t be matched or if market conditions change significantly.
If your order is unable to be executed quickly, it could be because the exchange couldn’t match your order or there weren’t participants on the other side. All event contract orders are submitted as immediate-or-cancel (IOC) limit orders and will be canceled or rejected if they aren’t immediately filled.
Event contracts also have a maximum number of contracts you can hold per contract side per event known as the position limit. This limit varies by contract.
Robinhood event contract payments may be classified as Miscellaneous income and reported on Form 1099 as applicable. A Form 1099 will only be generated for gains over $600. As a reminder, Robinhood doesn’t provide tax advice. For specific questions, we recommend consulting a tax professional.
Settlement payments for an event contract are reported for the applicable tax year in which you receive them. For example, if you received a payment in 2025, it’ll be reported for the 2025 tax year.
Robinhood is able to offer event contracts through Robinhood Derivatives and its membership with the partnered exchanges regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Robinhood event contracts allow for speculation in prediction markets—these are not bets.
Each contract represents an approximate probability between $0.01 and $0.99, with each cent effectively representing a 1% probability that the event will occur. For example, if a contract is priced at $0.53, this can be interpreted as a 53% probability that it will occur according to that market.
This allows participants to assign a probability to the outcome and take advantage of any perceived undervaluation.
Note that for some event contracts, the exchange that executes your orders may embed $0.01 within the price. Therefore the two sides of the contract may add up to $1.01 or 101%. So, it’s not an exact probability.
You can only own a Yes contract for one side at a time.
The payout, or settlement, is $1 or $0 per contract owned depending on the outcome of the event.
Robinhood charges a $0.01 commission per contract traded. The exchange that executes your orders may charge a fee of $0.01 as well. Review our Fee Schedule for more details.
An immediate-or-cancel (IOC) order is an order to buy or sell that must be executed immediately. Any part of an IOC order that can't be filled immediately will be canceled.
We won’t increase or decrease your buying power based on the gains or losses of the event contract while you hold the position.
When you close your position or when payout occurs, we will credit your account. However, your buying power may not update until the funds are transferred between entities, which means the funds are moved from your Robinhood Derivatives (RHD) account to your Robinhood Financial (RHF) account. This process occurs on the following day after the market closes on non-banking holidays.
All eligible users are able to apply to trade event contracts. If you’re having trouble gaining access, and believe you have met the eligibility requirements, one possible reason may be because you have a pending B-notice.
Currently, event contracts are only available to trade in-app.
Restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Futures, options on futures, and cleared swaps trading involves significant risk and is not appropriate for everyone. Please carefully consider if it's appropriate for you in light of your personal financial circumstances. Displayed prices are based on real-time market sentiment.
Read the Event Contracts Risk Disclosure for more information about the risks associated with event contracts.
The College Basketball Tournament event contracts are not endorsed by any collegiate athletic association or collegiate basketball team that is part of any collegiate basketball league, or any other company, agency, or government entity. The use of the term "College Basketball Tournament," and the use of any collegiate team names or abbreviations or colors does not indicate an endorsement of this product.
Futures, options on futures and cleared swaps trading is offered by Robinhood Derivatives, LLC, a registered futures commission merchant with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and Member of National Futures Association (NFA).