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Get Ready for Crypto Exposure as Morgan Stanley Joins the ETF Race
Read MoreHide Full Article
Key Takeaways
MS filed spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs on Jan. 6, accelerating crypto ETF momentum in early 2026.
Morgan Stanley aims to capture fees and integrate crypto exposure across its $7.9T wealth platform.
Crypto ETFs offer diversified, regulated exposure as direct Bitcoin holdings faced volatility in 2025.
The start of 2026 has marked a pivotal "regime change" for digital assets. After a period of cautious consolidation in late 2025, crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) inflows surged significantly, recording more than $1.2 billion in just the first two trading days of the year — a pace that can result in an annual intake of $150 billion (as per a prediction made by Bloombeg’s senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, cited in Trading View).
This momentum got supercharged on Jan. 6, 2026, when Morgan Stanley (MS - Free Report) formally filed for its own spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs. This latest stance by one of the world's largest wealth managers is likely to invite a massive wave of "discretionary" capital, creating an almost ideal setup to build crypto exposure through diversified ETF structures instead of navigating the operational frictions and custody risks of holding tokens directly.
Rationale Behind Morgan Stanley's Big Bet
Morgan Stanley's filing is not merely about following a trend; it's a calculated, strategic expansion into digital assets. The bank has filed to launch a spot Bitcoin Trust — a fund that holds actual Bitcoin — and a Solana Trust that uniquely includes a staking component to generate additional yield for investors.
This move transitions the bank from distributing third-party products to building its own, allowing it to capture management fees internally and deeply integrate these products into its vast client portfolios. With more than $7.9 trillion in wealth and investment management assets, as of 2024-end, the bank positions itself to capture the high-margin revenues generated by crypto products with the latest launch.
The rationale is clear — the economics are powerful. The SEC-approved spot Bitcoin ETF structure has proven to be a lucrative revenue stream for traditional finance. Data from Bitwise Asset Management’s third-quarter 2025 Corporate Bitcoin Adoption report, as cited in Yahoo Finance, showed that the number of public companies holding Bitcoin rose 40% sequentially to 172.
Against this backdrop of accelerating institutional capture, Morgan Stanley’s decision to launch its own proprietary funds is a masterclass in strategic timing, allowing the firm to leverage its enormous wealth management network to channel client assets directly into its proprietary products.
Given the bank's size and influence, its entry might also pave the way for other major institutions like Goldman Sachs or J.P. Morgan to follow suit.
Why Crypto ETFs Might Be the Strategic Choice Now?
At this moment, investing in crypto ETFs can be particularly profitable because traditional "direct" holdings of assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum have faced headwinds in the recent past. In late 2025, Bitcoin struggled to maintain its $126,000 peak, actually ending the year with a significant loss. Ethereum similarly saw its volatility pick up without a corresponding price breakout.
In contrast, investing in a broad-based crypto ETF mitigates single-asset volatility and provides diversified exposure to the sector's growth. It also offers institutional-grade security, liquidity, and regulatory compliance, removing the technical and custodial hurdles of direct ownership.
To this end, it is imperative to mention that the overall prediction for the digital asset economy remains bright for this year, with CoinShares, a prominent digital asset investment firm, suggesting that a Bitcoin price target of nearly $200,000 by the end of 2026 is achievable.
In a similar line of thought, JP Morgan analysts recently predicted the crypto sell-off to be nearing its end, with inflows and outflows in Bitcoin ETFs starting to even out (as cited in a Yahoo Finance report).
Crypto ETFs to Bet On
Considering the aforementioned discussion, to gain from the upside expected from the digital asset market in 2026, one may invest in the following crypto ETFs:
This fund, with net assets worth $1.07 billion, is the world’s first and largest crypto index fund. It tracks an index of the 10 largest crypto assets.
BITW has gained 4.2% year to date. The fund charges 75 basis points (bps) as fees.
This fund, with assets under management (AUM) worth $761.7 million, is the first U.S. exchange-traded product (ETP) with 100% direct exposure to the Solana blockchain platform. BSOL has surged 9.3% year to date. The fund charges 20 bps as fees.
This fund, with AUM worth $409.9 million, offers exposure to 33 companies involved in servicing the cryptocurrency markets, including crypto mining firms, crypto mining equipment suppliers, crypto financial services companies, or other financial institutions servicing primarily crypto-related clientele.
BITQ has rallied 13.1% year to date. The fund charges 85 bps as fees
This fund, with net assets worth $384.9 million, offers exposure to 35 companies positioned to benefit from the increased adoption of blockchain technology, including companies in digital asset mining, blockchain & digital asset transactions, blockchain applications, blockchain & digital asset hardware, and blockchain & digital asset integration.
BKCH has soared 18.2% year to date. The fund charges 50 bps as fees.
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Get Ready for Crypto Exposure as Morgan Stanley Joins the ETF Race
Key Takeaways
The start of 2026 has marked a pivotal "regime change" for digital assets. After a period of cautious consolidation in late 2025, crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) inflows surged significantly, recording more than $1.2 billion in just the first two trading days of the year — a pace that can result in an annual intake of $150 billion (as per a prediction made by Bloombeg’s senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, cited in Trading View).
This momentum got supercharged on Jan. 6, 2026, when Morgan Stanley (MS - Free Report) formally filed for its own spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs. This latest stance by one of the world's largest wealth managers is likely to invite a massive wave of "discretionary" capital, creating an almost ideal setup to build crypto exposure through diversified ETF structures instead of navigating the operational frictions and custody risks of holding tokens directly.
Rationale Behind Morgan Stanley's Big Bet
Morgan Stanley's filing is not merely about following a trend; it's a calculated, strategic expansion into digital assets. The bank has filed to launch a spot Bitcoin Trust — a fund that holds actual Bitcoin — and a Solana Trust that uniquely includes a staking component to generate additional yield for investors.
This move transitions the bank from distributing third-party products to building its own, allowing it to capture management fees internally and deeply integrate these products into its vast client portfolios. With more than $7.9 trillion in wealth and investment management assets, as of 2024-end, the bank positions itself to capture the high-margin revenues generated by crypto products with the latest launch.
The rationale is clear — the economics are powerful. The SEC-approved spot Bitcoin ETF structure has proven to be a lucrative revenue stream for traditional finance. Data from Bitwise Asset Management’s third-quarter 2025 Corporate Bitcoin Adoption report, as cited in Yahoo Finance, showed that the number of public companies holding Bitcoin rose 40% sequentially to 172.
Against this backdrop of accelerating institutional capture, Morgan Stanley’s decision to launch its own proprietary funds is a masterclass in strategic timing, allowing the firm to leverage its enormous wealth management network to channel client assets directly into its proprietary products.
Given the bank's size and influence, its entry might also pave the way for other major institutions like Goldman Sachs or J.P. Morgan to follow suit.
Why Crypto ETFs Might Be the Strategic Choice Now?
At this moment, investing in crypto ETFs can be particularly profitable because traditional "direct" holdings of assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum have faced headwinds in the recent past. In late 2025, Bitcoin struggled to maintain its $126,000 peak, actually ending the year with a significant loss. Ethereum similarly saw its volatility pick up without a corresponding price breakout.
In contrast, investing in a broad-based crypto ETF mitigates single-asset volatility and provides diversified exposure to the sector's growth. It also offers institutional-grade security, liquidity, and regulatory compliance, removing the technical and custodial hurdles of direct ownership.
To this end, it is imperative to mention that the overall prediction for the digital asset economy remains bright for this year, with CoinShares, a prominent digital asset investment firm, suggesting that a Bitcoin price target of nearly $200,000 by the end of 2026 is achievable.
In a similar line of thought, JP Morgan analysts recently predicted the crypto sell-off to be nearing its end, with inflows and outflows in Bitcoin ETFs starting to even out (as cited in a Yahoo Finance report).
Crypto ETFs to Bet On
Considering the aforementioned discussion, to gain from the upside expected from the digital asset market in 2026, one may invest in the following crypto ETFs:
Bitwise 10 Crypto Index ETF (BITW - Free Report)
This fund, with net assets worth $1.07 billion, is the world’s first and largest crypto index fund. It tracks an index of the 10 largest crypto assets.
BITW has gained 4.2% year to date. The fund charges 75 basis points (bps) as fees.
Bitwise Solana Staking ETF (BSOL - Free Report)
This fund, with assets under management (AUM) worth $761.7 million, is the first U.S. exchange-traded product (ETP) with 100% direct exposure to the Solana blockchain platform. BSOL has surged 9.3% year to date. The fund charges 20 bps as fees.
Bitwise Crypto Industry Innovators ETF (BITQ - Free Report)
This fund, with AUM worth $409.9 million, offers exposure to 33 companies involved in servicing the cryptocurrency markets, including crypto mining firms, crypto mining equipment suppliers, crypto financial services companies, or other financial institutions servicing primarily crypto-related clientele.
BITQ has rallied 13.1% year to date. The fund charges 85 bps as fees
Global X Blockchain ETF (BKCH - Free Report)
This fund, with net assets worth $384.9 million, offers exposure to 35 companies positioned to benefit from the increased adoption of blockchain technology, including companies in digital asset mining, blockchain & digital asset transactions, blockchain applications, blockchain & digital asset hardware, and blockchain & digital asset integration.
BKCH has soared 18.2% year to date. The fund charges 50 bps as fees.