Morgan Stanley’s Spot Bitcoin ETF Undercuts Competitors to Capture Wealth Management Flows
FV
Felix Vane
HSA eligibility IRS ruling · Apr 9, 2026
Source: DojiDoji Data Terminal
Investors in Morgan Stanley's new spot Bitcoin ETF can pay a fee of 0.14%, a rate that undercuts BlackRock’s IBIT at 0.25% and Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust at 0.15%.
Launched April 8 on the NYSE Arca, the MSBT fund marks the first time an asset manager affiliated with a U.S. bank has issued its own spot Bitcoin ETF. Previously, the bank distributed crypto products designed by others. The fund uses BNY Mellon for traditional custody and Coinbase for crypto-native infrastructure.
By issuing its own branded vehicle, Morgan Stanley is positioning itself to capture flows from its wealth management division, which oversees more than $6 trillion in client assets. The product allows financial advisors to integrate Bitcoin into client allocations through internal platforms, shifting the point of control from self-directed investors to the bank's network of thousands of advisors.
On its first day of trading, MSBT saw 1.6 million shares traded and $34 million in trading volume. The fund bought 430 BTC on its first day.