Morgan Stanley, one of the world’s largest investment banks, plans to introduce crypto trading on its consumer platform in the latest move by a traditional financial institution to capitalize on President Donald Trump’s deregulation of the crypto industry.
The banking giant plans to allow its customers to buy and sell crypto on its subsidiary, E*Trade, starting sometime next year, according to a Bloomberg report, citing “people familiar with the matter.” In order to establish and maintain the complex mechanisms needed to trade crypto, the company is reportedly considering partnering with one or more established crypto firms, according to the report.
Morgan Stanley declined to comment when contacted by Fortune. E*Trade did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fortune.
E*Trade, acquired by Morgan Stanley in 2020 for $13 billion, is a trading platform that offers stocks, options, and other assets. It currently has more than 5 million users who have access to Bitcoin and Ethereum in the form of exchange-traded funds—assets traded on the stock market that track the price of the cryptocurrencies—but cannot directly invest in the digital assets.
If Morgan Stanley makes good on its reported crypto ambitions, it would be entering a crowded field, facing competition from popular crypto trading platforms like Robinhood and Coinbase.
Reported interest from Morgan Stanley in becoming more involved in crypto trading comes on the heels of a Federal Reserve announcement last week that it was rescinding guidance from 2022 and 2023 that urged banks to exercise caution when dealing with cryptocurrencies and related activities. In the same breath, the Fed said that it would “consider whether additional guidance to support innovation, including crypto-asset activities, is appropriate.”
President Donald Trump has made his pro-crypto stance clear, promising to make America “the crypto capital of the world.” Within his first 100 days in office, the president has reversed many of the crypto-related enforcement actions that took place under the Biden administration, established a national Bitcoin reserve, and supported the development of a regulatory framework for the industry.
Several traditional finance companies have already taken advantage of the shifting regulatory landscape in the U.S. Fidelity Investments announced that it had begun testing its own stablecoin in March. Additionally, in February Bank of America’s CEO Brian Moynihan expressed interest in entering the stablecoin market once a regulatory framework is passed by lawmakers.
