Morgan Stanley announced on September 23, 2025, that it plans to offer direct spot cryptocurrency trading on its E*Trade platform, in partnership with ZeroHash to provide digital infrastructure.
According to Bloomberg, it is scheduled to launch in the first half of 2026, formally entering the sector of retail brokerages, such as Robinhood, since E*Trade clients will be able to trade Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Solana (SOL).
The upcoming service will initially focus on these three of the largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, while trading and custody will be held by ZeroHash. Jed Finn, Morgan Stanley’s Head of Wealth Management, said that ‘the initiative is the first phase of a broader crypto strategy that will eventually include a full wallet solution’.
How E*Trade’s enters the competition
Unlike Robinhood, which has multiple altcoin options and wants presence in private markets, E*Trade’s narrower scope can attract more conservative retail clients; at the same time, by offering direct spot trading. This places Morgan Stanley’s service in a specific niche of investors, while it does not open up its solution to a ‘full wallet’.
The decision has more legitimacy for crypto assets, due to signs from investors that digital assets are being encouraged by major institutions. At a broader level, crypto exposure advances toward giving investors the ability to hold and trade the assets directly. This shift allows cryptocurrencies to be managed within the same accounts that hold traditional assets such as stocks and bonds, aligning them more closely with existing brokerage services.
For retail users, this chain can lead to more choices, services, and potentially more competitive fee structures across brokerage platforms.
Morgan Stanley’s launch is a formal entry into the competitive arena for retail crypto investors, while the partnership with ZeroHash can provide technology stability. The new service and stack of altcoins is similarly following the direction of large corporations to provide intersection between the classes of assets.
Also read: JPMorgan CEO: Fed Rate Cuts Unlikely, Stablecoins Pose No Risk
