The Bitcoin investment landscape is set for a major shift as Morgan Stanley, a leading global financial services firm, gears up to launch spot BTC Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) through its network of 15,000 financial advisors starting tomorrow, August 7. This move, initially reported by CNBC on August 2, marks the first instance of a major Wall Street bank enabling such widespread direct access to Bitcoin investment products.
Following the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of 11 spot BTC ETFs earlier this year, Morgan Stanley’s announcement underscores a progressive acceptance of Bitcoin within mainstream financial services. Starting Wednesday, Morgan Stanley advisors will be allowed to offer shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) to their clients.
“The Japanese carry trade unwind will fade in to the rearview once Morgan Stanley’s 15,000 financial advisors start putting the BTC ETFs in client portfolios. I can tell that most people don’t really understand what this means yet. The US wealth management business is a beast,” said Mike Alfred, CEO of Digital Assets Data and Managing Partner at Alpine Fox LP.
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The ETFs will only be available to clients who meet specific criteria including a net worth of at least $1.5 million, a high risk tolerance, and an expressed interest in speculative investments. “This targeted approach ensures that the offering is matched with the risk profile and investment objectives of suitable clients,” a source familiar with the policy stated.
Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly, highlighted the change in protocol for private wealth advisors, “This is huge. Currently all of the private wealth advisors are “reverse inquiry only”, meaning they are not allowed to market the BTC ETF to their clients. That’s only now changed.”
Scott Melker, known online as “The Wolf Of All Streets,” commented on the implications of this move: ” This move reflects growing client demand and signifies a major step in Bitcoin’s mainstream adoption. Only clients with a net worth of at least $1.5 million, high risk tolerance, and an interest in speculative investments are eligible, and these investments are limited to taxable brokerage accounts.”
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Quinten Francois, a prominent crypto analyst, underscored the magnitude of this development: “Morgan Stanley will soon allow financial advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs. Morgan Stanley’s advisors manage $5.7 trillion in client assets, the biggest of the wirehouses.”
Popular Bitcoin analyst British HODL (@BritishHodl) added via X: “Morgan Stanley just changed the advisory game and started the hunger games for advisors, they’re bringing 15,000 hungry, commission driven sales people to the Bitcoin army to attack their $1.46T of assets under management.
At press time, BTC traded at $54,831.
Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com