Key points:
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas claimed that even tiny investments from the "huge network of what he dubbed 'Boomer money' might bring in new cash into digital assets.
A 1% to 2% portfolio investment from older generations might yield tens of billions for digital assets, underlined the expert.
Data from the Federal Reserve suggests that Baby Boomers and persons over 70 possess more than 80% of U.S. wealth, even if younger people are more likely to use crypto.
Eric Balchunas, Senior Analyst at Bloomberg ETF, had a strong response to Morgan Stanley's intention to seek for a national trust bank charter to handle digital assets. He suggested that this might open the way for a vast new set of investors to enter into crypto.
On Friday, Balchunas remarked on X, "Wow, they're really going all the way," pointing out that the huge Wall Street business not only filed to hold digital assets but also has spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs in the works. “Esp notable IMO given they have 16k advisors that manage $7T for 18 million people. It’s like a big network of Boomer money.”
Bloomberg reported on Friday that Morgan Stanley has filed for a new national trust bank franchise. This would enable the Wall Street powerhouse to own digital assets directly and considerably enhance its footprint in the bitcoin market.
An application submitted with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) on February 18 indicates that the new organization will not only preserve crypto assets but also trade them and give staking services to the company's investment customers. The trust bank would be situated in Purchase, New York, but would provide services nationally.
Boomers Entering Crypto
Historically, crypto adoption has primarily been oriented towards younger individuals, even though the 62 to 80 age bracket is more financially solid. According to the Federal Reserve statistics on wealth distribution, U.S. wealth is significantly concentrated among older generations, with Baby Boomers and those over 70 controlling over 80% of total wealth.
Balchunas speculated that older individuals may get into the crypto area as Morgan Stanley's advisers develop and manage portfolios for millions of customers, many of whom are near to retirement or already retired. A minor investment of 1% to 2% of portfolios over a small fraction of the company's $7 trillion platform may bring in tens of billions of dollars for digital assets.
Morgan Stanley’s Steps Forward In Crypto Adoption
The business appointed Amy Oldenburg as the head of digital-asset strategy in January. The bank has also filed for spot Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Solana (SOL) exchange-traded funds, suggesting that it wants to provide its customers additional alternatives for entering into crypto. Morgan Stanley also teamed with Zerohash to help E*exchange users exchange digital assets beginning this year.
As of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at $65,677.09, down 3% in the past 24 hours. On Stoctwits, retail mood about BTC remained in the ‘neutral’ zone, followed by ‘low’ discussion levels throughout the last day. Ethereum and Solana were also down 5.7% and 6.9%, respectively, in the previous 24 hours.
