Morning Minute: Morgan Stanley Files for Bitcoin, ETH and Solana ETFs
TL;DR
Morgan Stanley filed for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana ETFs, signaling major Wall Street adoption. This move, alongside record ETF inflows and institutional interest, reinforces crypto's growing mainstream acceptance despite recent price dips.
Key Takeaways
- •Morgan Stanley filed for spot Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana ETFs, marking a significant step by a top-tier Wall Street bank into regulated crypto products.
- •U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $697M in net inflows on Monday, the largest single-day total since October, indicating strong institutional demand.
- •The filing reflects validation and distribution benefits, as ETFs make crypto accessible to RIAs, family offices, and institutional allocators without direct custody setups.
- •Crypto majors like BTC, ETH, and SOL experienced slight price declines, but institutional flows suggest a reinforced floor and potential for a supercycle.
- •Other notable developments include a U.S. Senate vote on crypto market structure, record Ethereum network usage, and NFT movements like Clone X surging 250%.
Tags
Morning Minute is a daily newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The analysis and opinions expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Decrypt. Subscribe to the Morning Minute on Substack.
GM!
Today’s top news:
- Crypto majors fall for first time in 2026; BTC at $92k
- Morgan Stanley files for BTC, ETH and SOL ETFs
- US Senate schedules key vote for crypto market structure bill for next week
- Hyperliquid releases progress map, leads to speculation of next airdrop
- Nike announced it has sold off RTFKT; Clone X jump 250%
💰 Morgan Stanley Files for Bitcoin, ETH and Solana ETFs
Wall Street isn’t just dipping a toe anymore.
They’re diving in headfirst.
📌 What Happened
Morgan Stanley filed paperwork with the SEC to launch spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs yesterday, followed shortly by a filing for an Ethereum ETF as well, marking another major step by a top-tier Wall Street bank into regulated crypto products.
The filing comes as crypto ETF demand surged to start 2026.
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs just saw roughly $697M in net inflows on Monday, the largest single-day total since October, as Bitcoin pushed back toward the low-to-mid $90Ks.
That pushed their 2-day total for 2026 to $1.16B.
The timing matters.
After a choppy Q4 marked by drawdowns and tax-related selling, institutions appear to be stepping back in with size.
🗣️ What They’re Saying
“Back in October, Morgan Stanley dropped restrictions on financial advisors recommending crypto ETFs…
Now launching their own.
Makes sense given Morgan’s massive distribution.
Clearly they were seeing meaningful demand from clients for crypto ETFs.” - Nate Geraci, on X
Morgan Stanley manages 20 ETFs, but mostly under the Calvert/Parametric/Eaton Vance brands. These will be the 3rd and 4th ETFs to bear the "Morgan Stanley" brand. Pretty remarkable. https://t.co/oL1sX0LCcO
— Matt Hougan (@Matt_Hougan) January 6, 2026
🧠 Why It Matters
This is another quiet but important shift in the crypto market landscape.
The first major US traditional bank has filed for an ETF.
That matters for two reasons:
First, distribution. ETFs are how real money moves. RIAs, family offices, and institutional allocators don’t spin up crypto wallets or custody setups—they just buy the ETF.
Second, validation. When firms like Morgan Stanley file products like this, they’re signaling confidence that crypto exposure is no longer a fringe request from clients—it’s becoming table stakes.
Layer in the biggest ETF inflow day in months, and the message is clear:
Institutions are moving into crypto, and the pace is accelerating.
It doesn’t mean prices go straight up.
But it does suggest the floor under Bitcoin, and increasingly other crypto majors like ETH and Solana, is being reinforced by flows that tend to stick around.
That’s the thesis behind the supercycle. And it just might be playing out.
🌎 Macro Crypto and Markets
A few headlines that stood out:
- Crypto majors fell yesterday for the first time in 2026; BTC -2% at $92,000; ETH -1% at $3,210, SOL -1% at $138; XRP -5% to $2.24
- The U.S. Senate Banking Committee scheduled a key vote on the crypto market-structure bill next week, despite unresolved disputes over DeFi, stablecoins, and regulator mandates
- Ethereum network usage hit record daily transactions (2M+), though traders showed more bullishness on gold than ETH per sentiment markets
- Exchange balances for XRP tightened, pushing price squeezes higher and potentially supporting bullish continuation
- Telegram shared that it sold $450M of its TON over the course of last year
In Corporate Treasuries / ETFs
- The BTC ETFs saw $243M in net outflows on Tuesday, reversing the 2026 streak; ETH saw $115M in net inflows
- MSCI announced that it would not exclude Strategy or other crypto DATs from its index (MSTR +7% on the news)
- Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms sold ~2,200 BTC for nearly $200M in proceeds across late 2025, potentially fueling diversification into AI-related infrastructure
In Memes / Onchain Movers
- Meme majors were mostly red with Doge -2%, Shiba -4%, PEPE -3%, Bonk -4%, Pengu +-5%, WIF -9% and Fartcoin -4%
- fish (+70% to $10M) led onchain movers; Spark (+200%), SOL (+40%) and Kabuto (+70%) also saw notable moves
💰 Token, Airdrop & Protocol Tracker
- Hyperliquid shared a map of developments, teasing next airdrop
- Wasabi announced that its users would be eligible to receive 10% of their upcoming BOT token launch
- Rekt Drinks introduced their newest flavor as “Worldstar Cherry Cola”
- The RANGER ICO went live on MetaDAO
- Coinbase added MegaETH to its listing roadmap, indicating a TGE within the next 2-3 weeks