Morgan Stanley E*Trade Rolls Out Spot Bitcoin Trading with Competitive Fee

Morgan Stanley's E*Trade has completed its rollout of spot Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Solana (SOL) trading to U.S. clients, with a 50-basis-point fee undercutting rivals Coinbase and Robinhood rates.

The full availability was met on July 16, after a pilot for a small portion of customers earlier this year. The bank's Head of E*Trade, Matt Jones, explained that their clients' needs are evolving, and they want to invest, trade, bank, and plan for the future all in one place.

The completed rollout allows eligible E*Trade clients to buy, sell, and hold the three largest non-stablecoin digital assets inside the same interface they use for stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Trading is available 24/7 on the platform's web and mobile apps. Behind the scenes, Zerohash handles liquidity, execution, custody, and settlement, holding the digital assets in accounts linked to clients' brokerage accounts.

Morgan Stanley's pricing undercuts retail incumbents, with a fee of $5 for every $1,000 traded, compared to up to 60 and 95 basis points on the dollar at Coinbase and Robinhood. Chad Turner, Head of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Platforms, stated that 'With the rollout of crypto trading on E*TRADE we're advancing our digital assets strategy and bringing new capabilities to clients in an integrated way.'