Morgan Stanley aims to surpass UBS as the pioneering Bitcoin ETF bank

The race to launch spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States has sparked a competition among investment banks to be the first wirehouse to offer these products. According to crypto enthusiast Andrew (AP_Abacus), Morgan Stanley is aiming to beat UBS in becoming the first wirehouse to fully approve a Bitcoin ETF. Internal notes from Morgan Stanley suggest that the bank may make an announcement shortly before its move into Bitcoin ETFs. Andrew also mentioned that global banks have been actively discussing the addition of Bitcoin ETFs as a competitive race. Bloomberg ETF expert Eric Balchunas supported this claim, stating that neither Morgan Stanley nor UBS has added Bitcoin ETFs yet. Balchunas suggested that the banks are in a compliance game of chicken, waiting for one of them to make the first move. Andrew previously reported that UBS plans to add Bitcoin ETFs to its platform between April 8 and April 12. This latest speculation about Morgan Stanley’s potential rival move against UBS follows previous reports that the bank is set to approve Bitcoin ETFs on its platform in the next two weeks. When approached for comment, both Morgan Stanley and UBS did not respond. Spot Bitcoin ETFs made their historic trading debut in the United States on January 11, but customers of major banks like UBS and Citi were unable to access them due to various reasons cited by the banks. Some major banks, including Goldman Sachs, remain skeptical about Bitcoin even after the approval of ETFs.