Morgan Stanley expands access to crypto funds to all clients

Morgan Stanley is allowing financial advisors to pitch cryptocurrency funds to all clients as the asset management giant expands its offerings.

Morgan Stanley is making the move as it drops restrictions that have so far limited access to crypto funds to certain asset clients, CNBC reported on October 10.

According to the reportFrom October 15, the company’s financial advisors can recommend crypto investments to all clients, with clients able to invest in any available funds in any account, including retirement and trust accounts.

Morgan Stanley drops restrictions

Previously, the bank limited financial advisors to pitching Bitcoin (BTC) funds only to wealthy clients who were deemed to have an aggressive risk profile. The customers also had to own at least $1.5 million in assets, with further restrictions on the ability to access crypto only in taxable investment accounts.

These have now been scrapped and access to all customers will be rolled out from October 15, 2025.

For the foreseeable future, advisors will advise clients and pitch funds from BlackRock and Fidelity. However, the plan is to expand the list to other crypto funds, according to Morgan Stanley.

Pro-crypto stance

With more than $8.2 trillion in client assets, Morgan Stanley is an industry behemoth. But unlike many other industry peers, the stance on crypto investment offers to customers has increasingly shifted to a more supportive stance.

A shift in the regulatory approach to cryptocurrency in the United States has also reflected on this outlook, with the company buoyed by developments since the election of President Donald Trump in November 2024. Morgan Stanley recently announced plans to roll out trading in Bitcoin, Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL) to clients through its E-Trade platform.

The bank’s global investment committee has also recommended that crypto portfolio allocations be limited to 4% of initial exposure.

According to Lisa Shalett, Chief Investment Officer at the bank, crypto is currently “a speculative and increasingly popular asset class.” Many investors may want to explore the opportunities this asset class offers, Shalett added.