JPMorgan Becomes First U.S. Bank to Offer Crypto Funds to Retail Wealthy Clients

On Thursday, July 22, Business Insider reported that JPMorgan has given a go-ahead to its advisors to offer clients crypto fund services. This is for the first time that the U.S. bank is expanding its crypto services from just ultra-wealthy clients now to retail-wealthy clients as well!

In a memo published earlier this week on Monday, the bank said that its $630 billion wealth management division will start accepting buy and sell orders for five crypto funds. This includes the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), Osprey Funds’ Bitcoin Trust, Bitcoin Cash Trust, Ethereum Trust, and Ethereum Classic Products.

From CEO Jamie Dimon calling Bitcoin a ‘fraud’ back in 2017, to now offer crypto funds to clients, JPMorgan has come a long way. Traditional banking giants are obviously seeing a major shift in the global financial space with cryptocurrencies emerging as a popular asset class.

Not just JPMorgan but even America’s oldest bank BNY Mellon is also working on offering crypto trading solutions to its clients. Speaking to Forbes, Greg King, founder and CEO of Osprey Funds said:

“We are excited to be onboarded to the JPMorgan wealth platform. OBTC remains the lowest-priced publicly traded bitcoin fund in the U.S. and we believe JPMorgan’s clients will see value in the product”.

Brief Details of the Banking Services

With this move from the Wall Street giant, JPMorgan clients seeking investment advice will be able to access services to these crypto funds. This includes the bank’s self-directed clients that use the commission-free Chase trading app.

Besides, it also includes mass affluent and wealthy clients whose assets are managed by JPMorgan’s professional financial advisors. All crypto traders will happen only at clients’ request. Besides, advisors aren’t allowed to recommend crypto products.

This diversification of client-base is a welcome move suggesting more banking will follow the suit very soon. Furthermore, it gives an equal opportunity for retail players to participate in the emerging crypto space through regulated platforms.