Morgan Stanley Files for Ethereum ETF With SEC, Signaling Major Institutional Push

Morgan Stanley has taken another major step into digital assets by filing with the US SEC to launch an Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF). The proposed product, named the Morgan Stanley Ethereum Trust, comes from Morgan Stanley Investment Management, which oversees more than $1.8 trillion in assets, underscoring the scale of institutional interest behind the move.

The filing signals the firm’s intent to expand beyond traditional markets and offer regulated crypto exposure to a much wider pool of investors. While details such as the ticker symbol and listing exchange have not yet been revealed, the structure of the fund offers insight into how Wall Street is increasingly approaching Ethereum.

How the Ethereum ETF Is Structured

According to the filing, the ETF will be set up as a Delaware statutory trust, a structure commonly used in traditional finance products. The fund is designed to hold Ether directly, allowing investors to track ETH’s price performance without having to buy, custody, or manage the tokens themselves.

Notably, the trust also plans to stake a portion of its ETH holdings through third-party providers, meaning staking rewards would be reflected in the fund’s net asset value. This approach goes beyond simple price exposure and introduces a yield component, something that could make Ethereum-based ETFs more attractive than earlier-generation crypto products.

Part of a Broader Crypto Push

The Ethereum filing follows closely on the heels of Morgan Stanley submitting S-1 registrations for Bitcoin- and Solana-linked ETFs. Like the Ethereum trust, the proposed Solana product would also include staking, signaling a broader strategy focused on capturing both price appreciation and network rewards.

This coordinated push suggests Morgan Stanley is positioning itself early in what could become the next wave of regulated crypto investment vehicles, especially as investor appetite shifts beyond Bitcoin alone.

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Market Reaction and Ethereum Price Outlook

Ethereum has responded positively to the growing institutional narrative. At the time of the filing, ETH was trading near $3,200, up roughly 8% over the past week, reflecting improving sentiment across the market.

Crypto analyst Michaël van de Poppe points out that ETH has decisively broken above the $3,100 resistance level and is now consolidating, a structure he compares closely to Bitcoin’s recent behavior. He highlights the reclaim of the 21-day moving average as a key bullish signal, suggesting momentum has flipped in favor of buyers.

If ETH continues to hold above this level, Van de Poppe expects the uptrend to extend in the coming weeks, with $3,800 emerging as the next major upside target.

Morgan Stanley’s Ethereum ETF filing reinforces the idea that crypto adoption is moving firmly into the institutional phase. For Ethereum, regulated access combined with staking-based yield could strengthen long-term demand and further solidify ETH’s role within traditional capital markets.

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