Key Highlights
- Morgan Stanley filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to create the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust, which will hold real Bitcoin.
- Coinbase Custody will store most of the bitcoin in offline cold storage, while Bank of New York Mellon will also act as custodian.
- The bank applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to create Morgan Stanley Digital Trust.
Banking firm Morgan Stanley has filed a prospectus with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) outlining plans to launch the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust, designed to let investors get exposure to bitcoin without directly buying or storing the digital coin themselves.
Coinbase to manage the Bitcoin storage
According to the filing, the trust plans to use Coinbase Custody and Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) to safeguard its bitcoin. They will store the digital assets and handle transfers linked to share creations and redemptions.
Most of the bitcoin will be kept in offline cold storage vaults. In this setup, private keys stay disconnected from the internet to lower the risk of hacking. A smaller amount may move to trading wallets during periods of ETF creation or redemption activity. The filing also states that custody insurance exists but is shared among customers and “may not be sufficient to cover all losses.”
Plan for operations and administration
BNY will also take on several roles inside the ETF structure. It will serve as fund administrator, transfer agent and cash custodian. That means the bank will manage accounting records, maintain shareholder data and oversee cash movements tied to ETF transactions.
The trust is designed as a passive vehicle. It aims to track the price of bitcoin by holding the cryptocurrency directly instead of using derivatives or leverage. The filing says the fund’s net asset value will be calculated using the CoinDesk Bitcoin Benchmark 4PM New York Settlement Rate. This benchmark gathers trade data from major spot exchanges to set a daily reference price.
Morgan Stanley files for national trust bank charter
Meanwhile, this follows the bank’s recent application to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for a national trust bank charter.
According to a previous report, the application seeks to create a new entity called Morgan Stanley Digital Trust, National Association. The OCC received the application on February 18, and the public comment period runs until March 20.
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