Morgan Stanley to Enable Crypto Trading on E*Trade Platform Next Year: Report

The era of big United States banks sitting on the sidelines of the crypto industry is gradually ending, as most of them are beginning to embrace the budding sector. The latest on the list is the multinational investment bank and financial services company Morgan Stanley, which has primarily interacted with crypto derivatives over the years.

People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Morgan Stanley is planning to offer spot crypto trading services on its E*Trade platform next year. Since its inception, E*Trade has enabled users to trade U.S.-listed stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, and options.

Morgan Stanley to Offer Crypto Trading

Morgan Stanley’s decision to add a crypto trading feature to its E*Trade platform would be significant. The financial services firm is looking to partner with one or several established crypto companies to ensure seamless trading of multiple tokens, including bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH).

Currently, Morgan Stanley allows a cohort of its clients to trade crypto ETFs, options, and futures; however, its executives have agreed that spot crypto trading should be the next step. Discussions about the upcoming feature began to gain ground last year and intensified after U.S. President Donald Trump won the election in November.

In mid-January, the bank’s CEO, Ted Pick, revealed to CNBC the company’s plans to offer crypto trading, stating that the entity was in touch with U.S. regulators to see how it could enter the market. The bank already holds hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Bitcoin ETFs and was among the first to offer BTC custody services to wealthy clients in 2021.

Increased Competition in Crypto

Morgan Stanley’s plans to expand its crypto offerings come as the Trump administration removes barriers hindering the institutional adoption of digital assets. Less than four months after Trump took over the White House, several regulators have eliminated rules and policies that prohibited banks and traditional financial companies from interacting with the crypto sector. 

These agencies include the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Reserve, and even the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Additionally, Trump has signed an executive order to enable the creation of a strategic crypto reserve for the U.S.

To a large extent, Trump has delivered on his promise to make the U.S. the crypto capital of the planet, and banks are tweaking their policies and offerings to fit this new regime. With more financial institutions entering the crypto market, there could be increased competition in the space.