Summary
- Morgan Stanley has introduced spot Ethereum and Solana exchange-traded products, with tickers MSSE and MSOL.
- These funds will stake part of their assets, distributing staking rewards to investors.
- This launch is part of a broader series of crypto ventures by the firm this year, including a Bitcoin ETF and crypto trading via E*TRADE.
Morgan Stanley Investment Management is broadening its cryptocurrency portfolio by launching new exchange-traded products (ETPs) for Ethereum and Solana, which will provide staking rewards to investors. This move represents the latest development in the firm’s ongoing expansion into the digital asset realm.
On Tuesday, the company announced the Morgan Stanley Ethereum Trust (NYSE Arca: MSSE) and the Morgan Stanley Solana Trust (NYSE Arca: MSOL), designed to track the market performance of Ethereum and Solana, respectively. Each fund will implement a 0.14% expense ratio and will stake a portion of its holdings, passing any staking rewards directly to investors.
“Since launching our first ETFs in 2023, we've developed a diverse array of ETFs and ETPs, now totaling over $14 billion in assets under management,” stated Ally Wallace, Global Head of ETFs for Morgan Stanley Investment Management. “The introduction of MSSE and MSOL represents a natural progression of our product offerings, aimed at simplifying access to digital assets through the ETP structure.”
This launch follows the introduction of Morgan Stanley's spot Bitcoin Trust in April, which reportedly gathered over $381 million in assets by July 16. The firm's ETF and ETP platform has expanded to more than $14 billion across 22 different products.
This introduction is just one of several crypto initiatives announced by Morgan Stanley this year.
In April, executives from Morgan Stanley mentioned that the firm was exploring tokenized money market funds, digital asset tax management strategies through its subsidiary Parametric, and other blockchain-based solutions.
“We’re not going to stop at just Bitcoin,” Amy Oldenburg, head of digital asset strategy at Morgan Stanley, told Decrypt previously. “This is a long-term journey, and there’s still a significant way to go.”
In July, Morgan Stanley launched trading of spot Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana for eligible E*TRADE customers in partnership with Zero Hash, enabling clients to trade digital assets alongside traditional stocks and other investments.