American investment bank Morgan Stanley is preparing to launch cryptocurrency trading, planning to give retail clients access to digital assets in H1 2026.
Retail clients of E*TRADE, Morgan Stanley’s online trading subsidiary, will soon be able to use cryptocurrencies in trading operations, CNBC reports .
The American investment bank sees the initiative as a turning point for the wealth management industry. To ensure liquidity, custodial storage, and settlements, Morgan Stanley is partnering with the startup Zerohash.
According to Bloomberg, at the initial stage, E*TRADE clients will be able to trade BTC, ETH, and SOL directly. This format allows trading without intermediaries but also increases investor risk. Therefore, the bank is simultaneously developing its own cryptocurrency wallet to act as a custodian for client assets.
Jed Finn, Head of Wealth Management at Morgan Stanley, stated that the launch of crypto trading is just the “tip of the iceberg.” The bank’s plans include not only cryptocurrency trading but also the introduction of tokenized assets, including digital equivalents of stocks, bonds, and real estate. Finn also noted that the bank’s management believes tokenization will be the next stage in transforming the industry, enabling more efficient capital management.
At the end of 2024, Morgan Stanley introduced instant cross-border settlement for currency transactions for its corporate and institutional clients and became one of the largest investors in global blockchain infrastructure, investing around $1 billion.
