Morgan Stanley has become the latest major US institution to seek approval for a spot Bitcoin exchange‑traded fund, filing a Form S‑1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission on 6 January 2026 for the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust.
The proposed fund would hold physical Bitcoin and track its price net of fees, with units expected to list on a US national securities exchange once approved.
The filing follows two years of rapid expansion in the US spot Bitcoin ETF market. The first wave of products was approved on 10 January 2024, when the SEC authorised 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs in a landmark decision that reshaped digital asset access for both retail and institutional investors. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust and Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund quickly emerged as category leaders, drawing more than $10bn in combined inflows within their first month of trading and consistently ranking among the most active ETFs throughout 2024.
A second cohort of issuers, including VanEck, Bitwise and Franklin Templeton, expanded the market through mid‑2024, helping to establish spot Bitcoin ETFs as a structural part of the US investment landscape. By early 2025, the segment had surpassed $60bn in cumulative assets under management, with liquidity and spreads remaining resilient even during periods of heightened volatility.
Morgan Stanley’s move marks a significant escalation in institutional participation. The bank first offered Bitcoin exposure to wealth management clients through private funds in 2021, but an exchange‑traded product would extend access across a far broader client base. Its decision to pursue a spot ETF underscores the extent to which digital assets have become integrated into mainstream financial infrastructure as regulated products mature and investor demand deepens.
The SEC will now review the application, with market participants watching closely to see how one of Wall Street’s largest banks positions itself within an increasingly competitive and rapidly evolving ETF ecosystem.
