Charles Schwab to Launch Bitcoin and Ether Spot Trading, CEO Confirms

Charles Schwab is getting ready to increase its crypto choices by launching spot buying and selling for Bitcoin and Ethereum, in accordance to CEO Rick Wurster.

In an interview with CNBC on Friday, Wurster stated Schwab shoppers already maintain important publicity to crypto by way of exchange-traded merchandise (ETPs), proudly owning greater than 20% of the business’s crypto ETP market. Nonetheless, he famous that crypto nonetheless represents a comparatively small portion of shoppers’ whole wealth, round $25 billion out of $10.8 trillion.

“We anticipate launching Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) someday quickly in order that our shoppers have entry to that,” he stated. “We predict that shall be an acceleration of our progress.”

The CEO claimed that many consumers at present hold 98% of their wealth with Schwab however maintain simply 1% to 2% of their crypto property with digital-native corporations. “They actually need to deliver it again to Schwab as a result of they belief us. They need us to sit alongside their different property,” he added.

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Schwab to compete towards Coinbase

Wurster stated that Schwab is “completely” wanting to compete towards crypto exchanges like Coinbase by introducing spot crypto buying and selling. “In the event that they’re shopping for their crypto at Coinbase, we might love to see them deliver their crypto again to Schwab,” he stated.

Earlier this yr, Wurster stated the corporate expects an April 2026 launch window to present spot Bitcoin buying and selling companies to Schwab shoppers. On the time, he cited a 400% enhance in site visitors to Schwab’s crypto web site as proof of investor curiosity in digital property.

Schwab has elevated its involvement within the crypto sector amid rising regulatory readability. In 2025, the Workplace of the Comptroller of the Forex (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance coverage Company (FDIC), and the Federal Reserve rescinded earlier restrictive guidelines issued after the FTX collapse. The change permits banks to take part in crypto actions similar to custody and buying and selling.

Following approval from the US Securities and Alternate Fee, Schwab added Bitcoin and Ether ETFs to its platform. The corporate additionally gives different crypto-related merchandise, together with combined ETFs, mutual funds, and Bitcoin choices, in accordance to its web site.

Associated: Crypto tops fixed-income on ETF investor wishlist: Schwab Survey

Establishments ramp up crypto investments

A survey performed in March by Coinbase and EY-Parthenon discovered that 83% of institutional investors intend to enhance their crypto holdings in 2025, with many already investing in altcoins past Bitcoin and Ether.

The survey recognized XRP (XRP) and Solana (SOL) as essentially the most favored property amongst respondents. It additionally confirmed that the majority anticipate to allocate 5% or extra of their portfolios to cryptocurrencies this yr.