Retail investors bought $18.9 million in Robinhood shares during its IPO debut, less than other high-profile launches, data shows

Snap is the top-ranked retailer for net retail purchases in the first trading day. Vanda ResearchVanda Research stated that individual investors purchased $18.85 Million in Robinhood shares during Thursday's launch of the trading app.This is lower than the other major IPO launches, such as Coinbase's debut this year.Robinhood's first trading session ended down 8.4%, and it continued its slide Friday.Check out more stories from Insider's business page.Vanda Research data shows that Robinhood stock was purchased by retail investors for $18.85million during its first day on the public markets. This is lower than other major IPO launches.Retail investors invested more in this year's launch of the Chinese ride-hailing app Didi Global and crypto exchange Coinbase. According to Vanda, the VandaTrack arm monitors activity in more than 9,000 stocks and ETFs across the US, $57.4 Million was spent on Coinbase stock in April and $69.8 million in Didi stock in June.DoorDash's $19.7million purchase of shares in December 2020 was less than retail sales of Robinhood stock.Robinhood shares suffered a tough first session. They fell 8.4% to $34.82 at the close on Thursday. The IPO price of $38 was below its target range of $38- $42 per share.Vanda stated that Snap, a social media app, is the top-ranked listing with $143 million worth of shares bought by retail investors. Snap went public on March 17, 2017. Snap went public in March 2017. Uber followed suit with $139.9 Million in May 2019, for its ride-hailing app.Robinhood broke with convention when it launched its IPO, putting aside 35% of its shares to individual investors. Many customers were upset when the company stopped buying GameStop, AMC Entertainment, and other meme stocks during a major rally earlier in the year. Robinhood had promised to regain the trust of its customers. Robinhood has over 18 million customers and 17.7 millions active users each month.According to Ark Investment Management's daily trading report, Cathie Wood, an institutional investor, purchased nearly 1.3 million shares from Robinhood on Thursday. This represents a $45million stake in Robinhood, at the closing price.