Morgan Stanley May Offer Crypto Through E-Trade

E-Trade, the online brokerage division from Morgan Stanley, is considering offering crypto trading services. So far, it’s unclear when these changes would roll out or how expansive they might be.

The firm is considering this bold move due to Donald Trump’s recent election win and anticipated pro-crypto regulatory progress under his administration.

Morgan Stanley Wants a Share of the Lucrative Crypto Trading Market

According to reports, Morgan Stanely is eager to enter the market for crypto trading services, given the growing adoption of digital assets across all sectors.

The firm has long held a bullish view on Bitcoin, but its actions this year have been defined by indirect access to it. If it moves forward with this E-Trade plan, it would mark a significant new expansion.

For example, Morgan Stanley heavily pushed crypto ETFs this year, assembling an army of 15,000 brokers to help promote them. It allowed wealth advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs and even invested nearly $300 million in them by October.

However, this plan is still in the exploratory stage. E-Trade’s list of investment choices only mentions indirect exposure to cryptocurrency and advertises this type of access. If this plan goes through, Morgan Stanley would substantially change its existing relationship with crypto offerings.

Apparently, this policy reversal comes from one place: an expectation of beneficial crypto regulations. Donald Trump’s recent election victory brought a rampaging bull market to the crypto industry, and the firm is betting that he will bring further positive news. Trump pledged to bring wide-scale changes to crypto regulation, and E-Trade may benefit from this.

Ultimately, even if Morgan Stanley fully intends to go through with this plan, it’s still in the early stages. The firm is only exploring the feasibility of direct crypto offerings, and it will take time to develop and implement the specifics.

However, Trump’s term begins in less than a month, and this may provide a powerful incentive to launch.