Morgan Stanley brings crypto trading with lower fees than rivals

The bank is rolling out crypto trading on E*Trade with lower fees than Coinbase, Robinhood and Schwab, according to Bloomberg.

What to know:

• Morgan Stanley is launching crypto trading on E*Trade, charging 50 basis points in a pilot that undercuts rivals like Coinbase, Robinhood, and Charles Schwab.
• The service, set to roll out to all 8.6 million E*TRADE users later this year, is part of a broader push that includes Bitcoin ETF exposure and planned Ether and Solana products.
• The bank is also exploring deeper crypto integration such as custody services, crypto-to-ETF conversions, and potential tokenized equity trading to challenge existing market leaders.

Morgan Stanley is expanding its digital assets push by rolling out crypto trading on its E*Trade platform, positioning the offering as a lower-cost option to established retail crypto services.

The bank is currently running a pilot that charges the E*Trade users a fee of 50 basis points on transaction value, according to Bloomberg. That's notably lower cost than other major players, including Coinbase, Robinhood and Charles Schwab, which charge 60 to 95 basis points.

Morgan Stanley’s Head of Wealth Management, Jed Finn, said the initiative goes beyond offering cheaper crypto trading and is aimed at “disintermediating the disintermediators,” framing it as a broader structural shift in how clients access digital assets.

The investment banking giant plans to roll the service out to all 8.6 million ETrade customers later this year.

The latest offering builds on a series of crypto-related moves in recent months, including the launch of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, with planned products tied to ether and solana. Morgan Stanley has also advanced efforts on the infrastructure side, applying for a national trust bank charter that would enable it to directly custody digital assets.

Sources told Bloomberg that the bank is also mulling services that enable conversation of crypto holdings into exchange-traded products without selling and is preparing for potential tokenized equity trading later this year.

These moves are set to amplify competition in a market where Coinbase generated $3.32 billion in consumer transaction revenue in 2025, while Robinhood reported nearly $1 billion in crypto-related revenue.

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