Wall Street banking heavyweight Morgan Stanley has officially entered the next phase of institutional crypto adoption, filing for spot Bitcoin and Solana exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
On January 6, 2026, Morgan Stanley Investment Management — which oversees approximately $1.8 trillion in assets under management (AUM) — submitted Form S-1 applications for two new products: the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust and the Morgan Stanley Solana Trust.
If approved, these ETFs would allow investors to gain direct exposure to Bitcoin and Solana price movements through a regulated and familiar investment vehicle, without the complexities of self-custody or crypto exchanges.
The filings closely mirror the structure used by the 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs approved by the SEC in 2024, a market that has since matured and attracted sustained institutional inflows. However, the proposed Solana ETF marks a more forward-leaning and innovative step, highlighting growing confidence in alternative layer-1 blockchain assets.
Notably, Morgan Stanley’s move comes after the initial Bitcoin ETF wave has proven market demand and operational stability — reducing regulatory uncertainty and paving the way for broader crypto offerings.
Beyond product launches, the bank has also advised clients to allocate between 2% and 4% of their investment portfolios to cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin described as a “scarce asset akin to digital gold.” This guidance represents a clear shift in Wall Street’s long-standing skepticism toward digital assets.
Wall Street Pivots Toward Crypto
Morgan Stanley’s ETF filing is part of a wider institutional pivot.
In December 2025, Goldman Sachs announced a $2 billion acquisition of Innovator Capital Management, adding $28 billion in AUM and 159 ETFs to its asset management portfolio — significantly strengthening its footprint in the crypto ETF and active fund space.
Meanwhile, Citigroup has confirmed plans to launch digital asset custody services in 2026, further cementing crypto’s integration into traditional financial infrastructure.
Together, these moves signal that crypto is no longer a fringe asset class, but an increasingly core component of Wall Street’s long-term investment strategy.
Written by AndroidRev Editorial Team — covering Android, blockchain, and emerging tech.
