Morgan Stanley Applies for US Bank Charter to Custody Crypto

Morgan Stanley has filed for a de novo national trust bank charter to hold digital assets on behalf of clients. The application, received Feb. 18, names the entity Morgan Stanley Digital Trust, National Association and outlines plans to custody certain digital assets, execute purchases, sales, swaps and transfers, and support crypto staking.

A national bank trust charter permits fiduciary activities such as trust services, custody and asset safekeeping. The term de novo denotes a newly created institution rather than an acquisition. This marks Morgan Stanley’s first trust charter specifically focused on crypto and follows 14 other de novo bank charter applications in 2025; about 60 national trust banks are supervised by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in the US.

The move comes amid a broader rush for crypto-related charters. In December, the OCC conditionally approved five national trust bank applications from entities including First National Digital Currency Bank, Ripple, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos.

United States

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