Morgan Stanley Pushes Its Bitcoin ETF Closer to Launch With Coinbase and BNY Mellon as Custodians

Morgan Stanley has submitted an amended S-1 registration statement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the proposed Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust, naming Coinbase Custody Trust Company as the Bitcoin custodian and BNY Mellon in multiple operational roles including administrator, transfer agent, and cash custodian.

What Is Morgan Stanley's Bitcoin ETF and How Would It Work?

The proposed fund is structured as a passive investment vehicle that holds Bitcoin directly, rather than using futures contracts or derivatives. That puts it in the same category as existing spot Bitcoin ETFs from BlackRock, Fidelity, and others that launched in January 2024.

The trust would track the CoinDesk Bitcoin Benchmark 4 PM NY Settlement Rate, a widely used reference price for institutional Bitcoin products. Shares would list on NYSE Arca upon SEC approval. Morgan Stanley Investment Management Inc., a subsidiary of the bank, would act as the fund's sponsor and handle day-to-day operations.

The amended filing follows an initial submission in January 2025 and provides more detail on the fund's structure, custody setup, and risk disclosures.

How Will Bitcoin Be Stored in the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust?

The filing lays out a storage model that prioritizes security. Most of the fund's Bitcoin will be held in cold storage, meaning the private keys controlling the coins are kept offline and away from internet-connected systems. This is the standard approach used by institutional custodians to reduce the risk of hacks.

A portion of the Bitcoin may be temporarily moved to hot wallets, which are internet-connected, during share creation and redemption processes. This is standard practice across most spot Bitcoin ETF structures.

The filing also notes that insurance for custodial services is provided, though it is distributed across clients and may not cover all potential losses.

Who Are the Custodians and What Are Their Roles?

The two custodians carry significant institutional weight:

• Coinbase Custody Trust Company will serve as the Bitcoin custodian and prime broker, handling digital asset storage and trade execution. It is chartered as a New York state limited liability trust company.
• BNY Mellon will serve as administrator, transfer agent, and cash custodian, managing accounting, shareholder registry, and cash flows. It is chartered as a New York state bank.

The SEC filing states: "The Bitcoin custodians provide custody and trade execution services for digital assets." Coinbase already serves as custodian for the majority of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs currently on the market, with Fidelity being the main exception.

Why Is Morgan Stanley Entering the Spot Bitcoin ETF Market Now?

Morgan Stanley manages around 20 ETFs but only two currently carry the firm's name. Its move into Bitcoin ETFs is notable given its relatively limited direct crypto exposure to date, though the bank has been steadily building in that direction.

In 2021, Morgan Stanley was the first major U.S. financial institution to offer wealthy clients access to a Bitcoin fund through NYDIG. In 2024, it allowed advisors to recommend Bitcoin ETF products from BlackRock and Fidelity. The bank has also been preparing to launch digital asset trading on its E*Trade brokerage platform.

Earlier in 2025, the bank appointed veteran executive Amy Oldenburg to a newly created role focused on expanding its digital asset strategy. On its fourth-quarter 2025 earnings call, chairman and CEO Ted Pick told analysts the bank was "well positioned now in the crypto and tokenized asset space."

What Do Analysts Say About the Filing?

Jeff Park, Chief Investment Officer at ProCap and advisor to Bitwise Asset Management, noted that launching a Bitcoin ETF would benefit Morgan Stanley even if the fund does not match the scale of BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which has set multiple assets-under-management records since its January 2024 debut.

Park argued that having its own ETF signals institutional foresight and helps attract talent from the crypto industry, which could support broader initiatives like tokenized real-world asset (RWA) trading, a sector Morgan Stanley has been eyeing. He also described the broader launch of Bitcoin ETFs by major financial firms as a positive signal for the sector, indicating there is still significant untapped interest in digital assets.

Where Do Bitcoin ETF Flows Stand Right Now?

The filing comes during a period of mixed flows across the spot Bitcoin ETF market. Bitcoin is currently down roughly 42% from its all-time high of approximately $126,000. Despite the price drop, institutional appetite has not dried up entirely.

BlackRock's IBIT recorded $322 million in inflows on Tuesday alone, offsetting outflows from rival funds including Fidelity and Grayscale. This week's total flows stand at $683.3 million, following $787.3 million in net inflows last week, which was the first positive week after five consecutive weeks of outflows totaling nearly $4 billion.

Morgan Stanley has also filed a separate S-1 for a Solana (SOL) ETF, though that filing had not been updated at the time of publication.

Conclusion: 

The Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust, if approved, would be a cold-storage-first, passively managed spot Bitcoin ETF with Coinbase handling digital asset custody and BNY Mellon managing fund administration and cash. The filing adds detail to an initial submission from January and reflects the bank's continued push into digital assets across custody, advisory, and brokerage infrastructure.

Resources 

1. JP Morgan’s amended filing

2. JP Morgan’s Bitcoin spot ETF filing with the US SEC

3. Report by CoinTelegraph: Morgan Stanley taps Coinbase and BNY for Bitcoin ETF custody

4. Report by Reuters: Morgan Stanley becomes first major U.S. bank to offer clients access to bitcoin funds - CNBC