In a post on X, Alex Leishman, CEO of River Financial, compared exchanges that deal in alternative coins to crypto casinos. He stated a multi-asset trading platform, “leads to the exchange becoming more like a casino.”
River Financial focuses solely on Bitcoin trading, so Leishman is understandably critical of platforms such as Robinhood, which offer trading on a wide range of alternative coins.
Robinhood saw a 700% increase in year-on-year revenue from its crypto sector in the fourth quarter of 2024. It has continued to expand offerings this year including offering sports betting markets on events such as March Madness.
But, Leishman states he has no such interest in taking River Financial into these markets. In his post on X he went on to state, “(t)here are many successful crypto casinos, but I have no interest in building such a business.”
Bitcoin Only Model
The philosophy of River Financial is to focus only on Bitcoin, which Leishman claims “is focused on helping people build long-term wealth.”
Others would argue that alternative coins such as Ethereum or Solana offer an entry point into the crypto ecosystem for more users. This, in turn, can stimulate more innovation in blockchain technology and create exciting opportunities for many who feel excluded by a Bitcoin monopoly.
A Bitcoin-only model risks becoming a centralized system similar to the banking sector that the currency was set up to oppose. Additionally, many have criticized Bitcoin in the same way, describing it as nothing but a gamble for investors.
One user replied to the post stating, “Bitcoin only businesses always fail because bitcoiners don’t use Bitcoin. If you’re thinking about starting a Bitcoin only business, you’re doomed to failure.”
Crypto Casinos
Others have made comparisons between memecoins and crypto casinos. Eddy Lazzarin, CTO of a16z – a venture capital firm in the crypto industry – described the rise of alternative coins as a risk to the future of the crypto sector. Lazzarin commented, “(i)n the best-case scenario, memecoins are a risky gamble.”
As mentioned, some platforms such as Robinhood have boomed with the introduction of a host of new crypto coins. However, the overall market capitalization of memecoins has suffered a collapse of almost 50% in the start of 2025.
As Leishman posted, platforms appear to be at a crossroads, go down the path of a free-for-all like Robinhood or stick to the Bitcoin only path.
The debate will continue as users continue to speculate on the value of crypto for short-term gains or see it as a sustainable, long-term financial system.
Explore more articles like this
Subscribe to the Markets Outlook newsletter
Get critical insights to spot investment opportunities, mitigate risks, and refine your trading strategies. Delivered every Monday
Cointelegraph is a free to read website, by purchasing a product through affiliate links in our content, we may earn a commission at no extra cost for our readers. Which will allow us to finance our operations and continue with our research work for our readers. We ensure all recommendations go through in-depth editorial checks to maintain accuracy and quality. You can learn more about this on Content Guidelines and How We Rate pages.
