Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade discount brokerage division is jumping into the digital asset arena with a pilot program allowing low-fee cryptocurrency trading. The Wall Street bank’s emphasis is on the “discount” part of discount brokerage, offering trades for just 50 basis points on the dollar, or 0.5%. The launch is Morgan Stanley’s attempt to gain a share of an asset class that was until recently untouchable by banks, according to Bloomberg. The firm is anticipating that decentralized finance, or DeFi, will merge with traditional finance, underpinning a strategy of creating crypto-related offerings on many of its business lines to attract customers. The plan is to roll crypto trading out to all…
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Morgan Stanley launches ETP to track bitcoin performance
A blue chip bank’s tardy endorsement of crypto
Modern Consensus is coining a new phrase: ETF Slop.™ And Morgan Stanley is the latest to add its thumb to the scale. This morning, the giant bank announced the launch of Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust, an exchange-traded product that seeks to track bitcoin performance. It’s doing so through its subsidiary Morgan Stanley Investment Management, the first U.S. bank-affiliated asset manager that offers cryptocurrency what they’re calling ETP for exchange-traded product. While there’s hardly a shortage of instruments to track bitcoin, this kind of endorsement from the bluest of blue chip banks only adds to the sense that bitcoin has matured into an asset for grown-ups. “ETPs remain a powerful way…
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On heels of Morgan Stanley boost, BTC trashed by Bank of America, Investopedia
BoA analysts say Bitcoin is ‘impractical as a store of wealth,’ while an Investopedia investors survey finds 62% believe it is in a price bubble
According to financial news site The Street, BoA analysts on March 17 called Bitcoin “impractical as a store of wealth or payments mechanism,” adding, that there is no good reason to invest in Bitcoin “unless you see the price going up.” Beyond that, Investopedia editor-in-chief Caleb Silver said a survey showed the only bubble investors are worried about is Bitcoin.
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Markets Report: Bitcoin price hits $59K after Morgan Stanley rumors flood media
Claims which first appeared in CNBC point to Morgan Stanley becoming the first major bank to offer Bitcoin fund exposure
After a lingering closer to $50,000 support, Bitcoin saw a boost as mainstream media reported a market entry soon to come from Morgan Stanley. According to unnamed sources talking to CNBC, the bank will provide wealthy clients with $2 million or more in assets exposure to three Bitcoin funds.
