Morgan Stanley's brokerage arm E*TRADE announced on July 16 that it has begun offering spot cryptocurrency trading to eligible customers through a partnership with digital asset infrastructure provider Zero Hash. Users can now buy, sell, and hold Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Solana (SOL) directly on the E*TRADE platform, with custody handled by Zero Hash.
Competitive fee structure
E*TRADE charges a fee of 50 basis points (0.5%) per trade, undercutting the standard retail fees of Coinbase and Robinhood, and also lower than the 75 bps Charles Schwab introduced for spot crypto trading in April. With an estimated 8.6 million customer accounts, E*TRADE's entry puts pressure on existing exchanges on both fees and customer reach. The company first disclosed plans to expand crypto trading to E*TRADE in September 2025, launched a pilot in May 2026, and has now completed the initial rollout.
Custody and regulatory context
While E*TRADE provides the interface, all trading and custody are handled by Zero Hash, meaning assets are not protected by FDIC or SIPC insurance. The firm has indicated it plans to eventually transfer crypto services to a newly established trust bank. The move follows Morgan Stanley's previous steps into digital assets, including filing for spot crypto ETFs, tokenization initiatives, and launching money market funds for stablecoin issuers.
Industry implications
Matt Jones, head of the E*TRADE division, said in a statement that customer needs are evolving, with clients wanting to manage investing, trading, banking, and future planning all in one place. The development comes as Japan passed a law on July 15 to shift crypto regulation from the Payment Services Act to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, expected to take effect in 2027, raising the question of how far the integration of stocks and crypto assets can go through securities firms.