Trump Crypto Plans Have Wall Street CEOS Ready to Jump Into Digital Assets

Just days into President Donald Trump’s Second Administration, Wall Street is singing a different tune on crypto.

“For us, the equation is really around whether we, as a Highly regulated financial institutionCan act as transactors, ” Morgan Stanley Ceo Ted pick Told CNBC on thursday at the World Economic Forum In Davos, Switzerland.

The newfound optimism amon an increase number of bank execs who in davos this week is tied to trump’s pro-crypto agenda. Trump, a vocal crypto skeptic in his first term, Flipped on the issue during his 2024 campaign and came to relay on the Crypto Industry’s Money In his effort to defeat former Vice President Kamala Harris.

The President Sweeping Executive Order on CryptoWith an emphasis on “protecting and promoting” the use and development of digital assets. Banks have been reluctant to support crypto and enable transactions to this point in large part trust of the government’s position. The sec has brought more than 200 Cryptocurrency-Related Enforcement Actions Since 2013, According to cornerstone research,

“We’ll be working with treasury and the other regulators to figure out how we can offer that in a safe way,” Pick said.

Trump has nominated multiple crypto advocates to critical positions across across his administration. They include paul atkins to Chair the Security and Exchange Commission, where he was a commissioner under President GEOREGE W. BUSH. Howard Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, is Trump’s Pick For Secretary of Commerce, and Hedge Fund Manager Scott Bessent was tapped to Lead treasury.

If confirmed, bessent would oversee the ors and the financial crimes enforcement network, which bot play key roles in shaping tax and compliance policies for crypto trains and setting guidelines ption in the US

Pick says Morgan Stanley will be working with federal regulators to determine with mys possible to deepen the bank’s ties to the cryptocurrency markets. His firm has been more aggressive than its wall street peers.

In 2021Morgan stanley trust the first big us bank to offer its wealthy clients access to bitcoin funds. Last August, It was the First Major Wall Street Player to let its financial advisors Start Pitching Clients on some of the bitcoin exchange-traded funds that launched early last year. So far, wealth management businesses have only facilitated trades if customers Requested Exposure to the New Spot Crypto Funds.

Pick suggested that the more bitcoin seeps into the mainstream, the more it’s viewed as a legitimate part of the financial system.

“The Longer IT Trades, Perception Backets Reality,” He said.

Bank of America Ceo Brian Moynihan Echoed a willingness to Embrace Crypto, Specifically as a Payment Option, If the Regulatory environment shifts under the new Administration. Speaking in Davos, Moynihan Emphasized that Clear Guidelines Cold Unlock Browder Adoption.

“If the rules come in and make it a real thing that you can actually do business with, you’ll find that the banking system will come in hard on the transactional side of it Interview on Tuesday with CNBC,

Moynihan, who runs the second-bigaste bank by assets in the us, noted that crypto even “just another form of payment,” like Visa, Mastercard or Apple Pay. However, he steed clear of discusing cryptocurrencies like bitcoin as investments or stores of value, calling it “a separete question.”

Another Major Roadblock to Wall Street’s Adoption of Cryptocurrencies Has Been An Accounting Rule, Issued by the Sec in 2022, Requiring Banks to Classify Cryptocurrency as Liability eets. The rule has subjected those assets to strict capital requirements, significantly raising the financial and regulatory risks of offering crypto custody services.

Efforts to overturn the rules, Known as Sab 121, Gained Bipartisan Support in Congress Last Year. But then-president joe biden Vetoed the proposed legislation, leaveing ​​the rule intact and further discouraging banks from adopting digital assets. Banks have been larger forbidden from expanding their crypto offerings beyond derivatives trading and offering etfs to wealth management clients.

“At the moment, from a regulatory percent, we can’t own” Bitcoin, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon Told CNBC in an interview in davos this week. He said the bank would revisit the issue if the rules changed.

Late Thursday, The Sec rescinded Sab 121, potentially opening the door for banks to custody crypto assets without

“Bye, bye sab 121! It’s not been fun,” Wrote Sec Commissioner Hester Peerce, Who on tuesday was tapped to lead a new “crypto task force,” in a Post on x Late thuresday night following the decision.

Bitcoin Hit a record of Nearly $ 110,000 on Monday Ahead of Trump’s Inauguration Leading Browder Gains in the Crypto Market. As of mid-day Friday, it was trading at Around $ 106,000.

, CNBC’s Hugh Son Contributed to this Report.