Wall Street is getting closer: Morgan Stanley adds Bitcoin and Solana to the institutional portfolio

The Wall Street institution Morgan Stanley has officially filed S-1 registration forms with the SEC earlier this week to launch two new funds: the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust and the Morgan Stanley Solana Trust. These steps indicate a further professionalization and institutionalization of the cryptocurrency market.

The Current Market Status

The Bitcoin market currently shows a price of $90.68K with a 24-hour decline of -2.48%. Solana’s current price is $127.96, with a daily decrease of -4.13%. These price movements play an important role when it comes to the valuation of spot ETF products that aim to replicate these price movements.

Passive Replication as a Business Model

According to the financial institution, both funds are designed as passive investment vehicles intended to mirror the price performance of their respective cryptocurrencies. Interestingly, Morgan Stanley, unlike some competitors, is foregoing joint ventures or white-label solutions — the products will be offered directly under the Morgan Stanley name.

The regulatory documents suggest that custodians and institutional counterparty entities still need to be named to handle USD conversions. The exact fee structure is also still in the finalization phase and has not yet been publicly disclosed.

A Growing Market Segment

Bitcoin ETFs have established themselves as a significant asset class. With total assets under management of $119 billion, these products demonstrate the increased acceptance by institutional investors. BlackRock dominates this segment with its iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which alone manages $72.8 billion.

The market for Solana ETFs, on the other hand, is still young. Since the launch of the Bitwise Solana ETF in October 2025, additional providers have entered the market: VanEck launched its Solana ETF, Fidelity introduced its Solana Fund, and Grayscale added a Solana Trust ETF to the lineup.

The Significance for the Market

Morgan Stanley’s entry into the ETF business underscores that traditional financial institutions are increasingly viewing the cryptocurrency market as a strategic investment field. The combination of an established market position and direct product responsibility could lend additional credibility to this new fund category and attract further institutional capital flows.