Morgan Stanley officially filed documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on January 6, 2026, seeking approval to launch spot Bitcoin and spot Solana trusts.
This Wall Street giant is the first among America’s top ten banks to take this step, signaling a new phase in traditional finance’s acceptance of cryptocurrency.
01 Institutional Entry
Morgan Stanley’s move isn’t an isolated event—it comes against the backdrop of a fundamental shift in Wall Street’s attitude toward cryptocurrencies.
As one of the top ten U.S. banks by total assets, Morgan Stanley’s submission of the Form S-1 to launch Bitcoin and Solana ETFs marks the first attempt of its kind at this level.
Driving this action is a widespread consensus on Wall Street: "We can’t afford to wait any longer." Competitors like Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and Citigroup have already been ramping up their digital asset divisions.
Even traditionally conservative Vanguard allowed clients to trade crypto ETFs in December 2025, while Bank of America recently updated its policies to let wealth advisors recommend Bitcoin ETF allocations.
02 Product Innovation
According to the application, Morgan Stanley’s Bitcoin trust will directly hold Bitcoin and follow a passive management strategy, refraining from active trading based on market conditions. The Solana trust introduces an innovative feature—staking.
This means the product not only tracks Solana’s price, but also stakes a portion of its holdings to support the blockchain network and earn rewards. This differentiated strategy is clearly designed to attract investors seeking additional yield.
It’s worth noting that Solana is currently the sixth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, and its spot ETF product saw a net inflow of $2.29 million on December 31, 2025.
03 Market Response
The cryptocurrency market started 2026 on a strong note, setting favorable conditions for Morgan Stanley’s entry.
On January 5, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded their largest single-day net inflow since October 7, 2025, totaling $697 million. BlackRock’s IBIT product led the trend, drawing in $372 million in a single day.
At the same time, spot Ethereum ETFs added over $168 million in net new assets. This simultaneous demand for the two largest crypto assets points to a broader risk appetite in digital assets at the start of the new year.
On January 6, Bitcoin’s price surged to near $94,700, up more than 7% since January 1. Ethereum rose nearly 2%, briefly breaking above $3,300, with a weekly gain of about 9%. Solana stood out, jumping nearly 13% in a single day to $143, with a weekly increase approaching 29%.
04 Regulatory Momentum
The current shift in U.S. government regulation has cleared the way for Wall Street institutions to enter the crypto sector.
In July 2025, Trump signed the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act), creating a comprehensive regulatory framework for stablecoins.
That same month, the Cryptocurrency Legal Accountability, Registration, and Investor Transparency Act (CLARITY Act) passed Congress and is expected to clear the Senate on January 15, 2026.
In September 2025, the SEC amended listing rules for new commodity ETFs, including crypto assets, paving the way for more financial products to enter the market.
05 Capital Inflows
Todd Sohn, Senior ETF Strategist at Strategas Securities, noted, "For issuers, the scale of crypto assets has become too large to ignore."
Currently, over $150 billion is allocated across approximately 130 U.S. crypto funds. Spot Bitcoin ETFs alone now hold $123 billion in total net assets, representing 6.57% of Bitcoin’s total market capitalization.
Since the beginning of 2026, these products have seen net inflows exceeding $1.1 billion. QCP Capital observed, "The correlation between cryptocurrencies and broader risk assets is looking less like coincidence and more like a structural shift at the start of the year."
06 Investment Insights
Morgan Stanley manages assets for roughly 19 million clients, and its entry into crypto ETFs could bring unprecedented institutional capital to the market.
Unlike asset managers such as BlackRock, Morgan Stanley boasts a vast wealth management division and thousands of advisors. With internal ETF products, the bank can vertically integrate these offerings into client portfolios and retain management fees in-house.
For retail investors, this means easier access to crypto through traditional brokerage accounts. Shares will be created and redeemed by authorized participants in cash or in-kind, while individual investors can buy and sell them on the secondary market via their brokers.
On mainstream trading platforms like Gate, investors can closely track price movements of major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Solana. As of January 7, the overall market remains upbeat, with Bitcoin holding near $93,000 and Solana continuing to show strong momentum.
Morgan Stanley plans to support token trading for its E*Trade online brokerage clients in 2026, signaling its active expansion of digital asset infrastructure.
Outlook
As of January 7, Solana’s price on Gate is $139.37, up 0.5% in the past 24 hours. Bitcoin remains firmly above the $92,500 mark.
Morgan Stanley’s application has yet to specify detailed custody arrangements, which are expected to be disclosed in subsequent amendments. Once approved, these products will be listed on national securities exchanges, with ticker symbols to be announced.
With more institutional capital expected to flow in throughout 2026, the cryptocurrency market could be poised for a new growth cycle. Cristiano Castro, Head of Business Development for BlackRock Brazil, revealed that as of November 2025, the company’s spot Bitcoin ETF had become its primary revenue source, with allocations nearing $100 billion.
