Morgan Stanley's Heavy Investment in E*Trade Expands Retail Investor Landscape, Marks Largest Acquisition Since the Financial Crisis

Wall Street sees its biggest acquisition since the financial crisis as Morgan Stanley acquires discount broker and online bank E*Trade for a hefty sum. Additionally, Fidelity International, a subsidiary of the American multinational financial services giant Fidelity Investments, invests HK$110.5 million (US$14.2 million) in the Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange OSL.

• Morgan Stanley Acquires E*Trade for Billions
• Fidelity Actively Enters the Cryptocurrency Space

Morgan Stanley Acquires E*Trade for $13 Billion

Commonly known as "Big Mo," Morgan Stanley recently announced the acquisition of online trading platform E*Trade for $13 billion, marking Wall Street's largest acquisition since the financial crisis, second only to the $13.5 billion acquisition of Smith Barney in 2009.

It is understood that Morgan Stanley's primary target audience is institutional investors, while E*Trade's zero-commission structure will allow it to expand its business aimed at retail traders, highlighting Wall Street's increasing focus on retail investors.

Prior reports indicated that E*Trade will increase its trading services for Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), and will continue to introduce more cryptocurrency trading pairs in the future.

Fidelity Investments Enters Cryptocurrency Exchange Ownership

The OSL exchange is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based BC Technology Group. According to documents from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Fidelity acquired 17 million shares of BC Group at an average price of HK$6.50 per share on February 12, making Fidelity one of the major shareholders with a 5.6% stake.

This investment is part of BC Group's announcement at the end of January of a $36 million share placement. However, this strategic partnership has not led to an immediate positive impact, as BC Group's stock price has not risen as of now.

CEO of BC Group, Hugh Madden, stated:

We are excited to see more world-class equity investors participating in the rapidly growing field of crypto assets, and we look forward to achieving new milestones with institutional investors in the crypto industry.

Further Reading

• • Institutional Involvement Unstoppable, Compliance of Cryptocurrency Infrastructure Accelerating
  • Coinbase Makes Moves, Hires Former Google VP, Launches International Custody Services

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