Shares of Morgan Stanley (MS) surged over 2% on May 6 after the Wall Street bank launched cryptocurrency trading on its retail brokerage platform, E*Trade. The new service allows users to trade digital assets, including Bitcoin (BTC-USD), Ethereum (ETH-USD), and Solana (SOL-USD), at lower prices than most of its rivals.
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Although the feature is still in testing mode and is only available to certain users, it will be fully rolled out to Morgan Stanley’s 8.6 million clients later this year. This move shows how Wall Street banks are now expanding fully into the crypto market.
Morgan Stanley Expands into Retail Crypto Trading
Morgan Stanley is charging users 50 basis points, or 0.5%, per crypto transaction on its E*Trade platform. This pricing is cheaper than what most of its rivals offer. As a result, this positions the firm as a better option to traders than its competitors.
Instead of creating a separate crypto exchange, the bank added digital assets trading to its existing brokerage platform. This was possible after working with Zero Hash, a B2B firm that helps institutions add digital assets, stablecoins, and crypto trading to their platform.
As a result, customers who already trade stocks, ETFs, and other financial products can now trade crypto without leaving the app. The rollout also signals a broader shift within the traditional finance sector, as major banks are integrating crypto trading into their services.
Lower Fees Spikes Competition Across Crypto Platforms
Morgan Stanley’s stock has climbed more than 2% since it announced the launch of its new service. This shows investors reacted positively to the bank’s move into crypto trading.
Eric Balchunas, a senior Bloomberg ETF analyst, said on X that Morgan Stanley’s trading fee undercuts Charles Schwab’s 75-basis-point fee, which was already lower than most crypto exchanges’ fees. He added that crypto trading could become significantly cheaper as rivalry among financial firms surges.
Reports suggest that Morgan Stanley’s latest move points to growing crypto use among banks and financial institutions. This is because the Wall Street bank already offers Bitcoin-related investment products, but the update now lets clients access spot crypto trading directly through their accounts.
Analysts believe ongoing competition among financial firms could soon center on pricing, ease of use, and platform integration. This puts extra pressure on crypto exchanges like Coinbase (COIN) and Robinhood (HOOD).
Is Morgan Stanley Stock a Good Buy?
Wall Street Analysts rate Morgan Stanley (MS) as a Moderate Buy. The stock currently trades at around $193.35, with an average price target of $202.09 and upside potential of 10.23%. For more information on this stock’s performance, rating, and price target, visit the TipRanks Stocks Comparison Center.
