Morgan Stanley’s CEO to work with U.S. regulators to explore more options in crypto

Morgan Stanley’s CEO Ted Pick commented at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos that the bank was ready to work with financial regulators to explore options for greater involvement in crypto. Pick explained that Morgan Stanley hoped to cross the obstacle of whether it could act as a crypto transactor as a highly regulated financial institution. 

The Morgan Stanley CEO assured that the bank would work with the U.S. Treasury Department and other regulators to explore options for offering crypto services safely. The Morgan Stanley bank has been exploring crypto trading options through E*TRADE. The branch has been offering Morgan Stanley users exposure to crypto through crypto exchange-traded funds, crypto-related stocks, and futures. 

BofA CEO says U.S. banks are considering engaging in crypto more 

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan spoke during the WEF Davos meeting about the U.S. banks’ willingness to engage in crypto. Moynihan’s comment came after a question concerning the direction U.S. banks would take regarding crypto under the new pro-crypto administration. The BofA CEO explained that regulatory clarity would be necessary for major banks to engage as crypto transactors. 

Moynihan also highlighted the possibility of crypto becoming a new form of payment alongside debit cards, Visa, Mastercard, and Apple Pay. The BofA CEO further pointed out that banks like Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, among others, had access to what they would require to join crypto. The executive still did not touch on crypto as a store of value or as a favorable investment option. 

A recent report outlined U.S. banks’ reluctance to offer retail crypto transaction services. Another report revealed that regulators had asked the U.S. banks offering and wishing to offer crypto banking services to pause crypto-related activity. 

Coinbase released the court documents in June last year revealing internal communications of the banking regulator FDIC. The FDIC had also notified all U.S. banks that the organization would confirm when a decision was made regarding the banks’ availing of crypto services.  One document highlighted the FDIC’s lack of clarity on whether banks required any filing to offer crypto-related services. 

A Reuters report from December last year still outlined that U.S. bankers were cautious about crypto despite Trump’s promises for regulatory clarity. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon commented during the Reuters NEXT event that crypto regulations needed to evolve. The U.S. CFTC commissioner Kristin Johnson also expressed worry that the new administration might not learn from previous crises. 

The U.S. SEC creates a crypto task force for regulatory clarity

SEC has launched crypto task force…

“Dedicated to developing a comprehensive & clear regulatory framework for crypto assets.”

Led by Hester Peirce.

Yes, please. pic.twitter.com/fznzKcuocY

— Nate Geraci (@NateGeraci) January 21, 2025

The U.S. SEC announced on January 21 that acting chair Mark Uyeda had created a new crypto task force to develop a comprehensive crypto regulatory framework for the country. The commission appointed Commissioner Hester Pierce as the task force’s lead. The announcement further revealed that Taylor Asher would be the Chief Policy Advisor and Richard Gabbert would be the task force’s Chief of Staff.

The commission’s announcement also outlined the issues with the previous regulatory course of action, calling it ‘retroactive and reactive.’ The commission pointed out that the path taken by the previous U.S. SEC leadership led to the implementation of untested regulations. 

The announcement further outlined the issues with regulatory clarity, leading to vagueness about crypto service registration and solutions to any obstacles faced by registering individuals. The commission mentioned that the lack of clarity led to confusion, which further led to hurdles in crypto and blockchain innovation within the U.S. 

The new task force will engage the rest of the commission’s staff and the public to create more sensible regulations. Uyeda expressed his anticipation of working with Pierce and other divisions of the commission to achieve regulatory clarity. The acting chair added that the process would require patience and contribution from industry participants, investors, crypto companies, academics, and other parties.

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