Morgan Stanley supports bitcoin and crypto strategies, but the bank’s digital economy title is the result of years of planning, not a sudden rush to catch up.
Speaking at the Digital Asset Summit on Tuesday, Amy Oldenburg emphasized that Wall Street’s move to digital assets reflects a long-term effort to modernize money. “We have been on a journey around the world of modern financial infrastructure for years,” he said, rejecting the idea that banks are acting out of fear of missing out.
Morgan Stanley has grown beyond indirect crypto exposureas funds for wealthy bitcoin clients, to offer ETFs on the spot on its E*Trade platform and has signed up to launch its own bitcoin ETF.
Looking ahead, the bank plans to support tokenized equities on some of its trading systems in the second half of 2026.
Oldenburg said the challenges remain huge. Improving access systems, integrating networks around the world, and integrating with the banking system are all progressing slowly. “We can’t just change it on our own,” he he said.
Even amid high prices, corporate services are growing quietly. Stablecoins and trading instruments are booming, showing that Wall Street’s deeper crypto consolidation is happening – slowly, but steadily.
“This is a natural phenomenon,” Oldenburg told Strategy World. “We cannot borrow the skills to do this. People expect Morgan Stanley – they trust our brand – they will not fail”
Morgan Stanley’s bitcoin ETF is coming
Back in January, Morgan Stanley filed and US authorities set up a bitcoin ETF, the first major US bank to follow a fund built directly on the price of bitcoin.
The proposed Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust will hold bitcoin directly, instead of using futures or derivatives, joining companies like BlackRock and Fidelity in the growing $120 billion ETF market.
Phong Le, CEO of Strategy, to be invited Morgan Stanley wants a bitcoin ETF to bet “Bitcoin Monster” bet, estimating that a 2% dividend for a small 2% dividend for the bank’s $8 trillion wealth platform can manage $160 billion in BTC.
funds, to set up a business under the ticker MSBT on the NYSE Arca, it holds bitcoin directly and uses BNY Mellon and Coinbase for administrative and management services.
Le also highlighted that even a small portion of wealth managers can go beyond existing ETFs such as BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust.
While Morgan Stanley has begun offering BTC ETFs to clients, SEC approval for the new fund is still pending.
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