Morgan Stanley has filed for a de novo nationwide belief financial institution constitution that might enable it to custody digital property, in accordance with Bloomberg.
The appliance, submitted underneath Morgan Stanley Digital Belief, was filed on Feb. 18 and seems on the Workplace of the Comptroller of the Forex’s public web site, although the itemizing contains few extra particulars.
What the constitution would enable
Bloomberg reported that Morgan Stanley plans to make use of the constitution to offer custody providers and likewise conduct staking and buying and selling for its funding shoppers.
The report described the submitting as a part of a broader shift within the financial institution’s strategy to digital property.
Latest crypto strikes
In latest months, Morgan Stanley has moved from a cautious posture to a extra assertive push into crypto, Bloomberg mentioned.
Final month, the financial institution tapped veteran government Amy Oldenburg to steer digital asset technique in a newly created function.
Earlier this yr, the agency filed to listing spot bitcoin and Solana ETFs and mentioned it plans to launch a proprietary digital pockets later in 2026.
OCC approvals set the backdrop
Morgan Stanley’s OCC submitting follows conditional approvals granted to a number of crypto-native and conventional companies.
These embrace Crypto.com and Stripe subsidiary Bridge, in accordance with the report.
In December, the OCC additionally granted conditional approval to Ripple, Circle, BitGo, Constancy Digital Belongings, and Paxos.