Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade has completed its rollout of spot trading for bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH), and solana (SOL) to eligible U.S. clients, going live on July 16 with a 50-basis-point (0.50%) trading fee. The move adds direct crypto exposure to E*Trade’s brokerage platform as competition intensifies among major financial firms offering digital asset services.
What E*Trade Is Offering
- Spot trading in bitcoin, ether, and solana — the three largest non-stablecoin cryptoassets by market capitalization.
- Buy, sell, and hold within the E*Trade interface used for traditional brokerage accounts.
- A stated trading fee of 0.50% per transaction.
Spot trading provides direct exposure to the underlying assets, distinct from derivatives or exchange-traded funds. E*Trade described availability as limited to eligible U.S. customers.
Pricing and Competitive Positioning
The 50-basis-point fee positions E*Trade below many mainstream platforms that charge higher explicit commissions or embed wider spreads. The pricing underscores escalating competition among retail brokerages and crypto-native platforms seeking to attract and retain clients transacting in digital assets.
Why It Matters
E*Trade’s launch reflects a broader push by established Wall Street firms to integrate crypto alongside traditional products, aiming to meet ongoing retail demand within familiar, regulated brokerage environments. The addition of BTC, ETH, and SOL expands access beyond bitcoin-only offerings and follows a multi-year trend of growing institutional and retail engagement with digital assets.