Morgan Stanley’s spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) began trading Wednesday with solid early activity, with more than 1.6 million shares traded and about $34 million in inflows, the bank said.
Listed under the ticker MSBT, the fund tracks the CoinDesk Bitcoin Benchmark 4 PM New York Settlement Rate and charges an expense ratio of 0.14%. It is the cheapest fund in the category, offering a clear, if narrow, price advantage over the competition.
MSBT entered the market with a different strength than others: distribution. Morgan Stanley’s wealth management arm oversees trillions of dollars in client assets and operates one of the largest financial advisor networks in the industry. That reach could help the fund gain ground as more investors gain access to bitcoin through advisors rather than direct trading platforms.
Some experts expect the fund to draw capital from existing products, notably BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), the largest spot bitcoin ETF currently on the market. MSBT has a lot of catching up to do. Launched among nine other ETFs in January 2024, IBIT has amassed over $53 billion in assets and has quickly become the asset manager’s most successful ETF.
Wednesday’s trade provides an early signal of demand, although it remains to be seen whether MSBT can maintain momentum in a market dominated by a handful of major players.
UPDATE (8 April 2026, 20:00 UTC): Adds additional details.
