Stanley’s Bitcoin Etf Could Offer Strategic Value Beyond... Morgan

Analysts say the bank’s late entry into spot Bitcoin ETFs may still carry reputational and strategic upside across its brokerage and crypto ambitions.

US investment bank Morgan Stanley may be positioning itself so that even if its newly announced spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund underperforms, it will still deliver strategic benefits across the firm, according to ProCap chief investment officer Jeff Park.

“Morgan Stanley is making the bet that even if their ETF doesn't scale to blockbuster success, there's an intangible benefit that will help build their clout,” Park said on Wednesday.

His comments come just a day after Morgan Stanley filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to launch two ETFs, one tied to Bitcoin (BTC) and the other to Solana (SOL).

Park said that no matter how significant the inflows are for Morgan Stanley’s new products, the move will bring social, reputational, and financial benefits.

He pointed to Morgan Stanley’s “focused attention” on monetizing its brokerage subsidiary ETRADE through crypto trading and tokenization partnerships.

“This becomes especially more relevant as a positive externality if it helps recruit top talent vs competitors,” Park said.

Park said the announcement shows that the crypto market is “much bigger” than crypto industry professionals anticipated. “Especially to reach new customers,” he said.

He also argued that another factor beyond performance is the reputational edge the spot Bitcoin ETF gives the firm by making it look pro-Bitcoin.

Related: Bitcoin faces ‘boring sideways’ grind in coming months: CryptoQuant CEO

Source: CoinTelegraph