Merrill, Wells Fargo latest to offer bitcoin ETF products

Bank of America's Merrill arm and Wells Fargo's brokerage unit are offering access to ETFs that invest directly in bitcoin, underscoring the increasing acceptance of the products by mainstream firms.

The banks are offering the approved ETFs to some wealth management clients with brokerage accounts who request the products, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.

After years of industry speculation, nearly a dozen bitcoin ETFs won approval from U.S. regulators in January — with the landmark decision sparking a surge in demand for the vehicles. But even with regulators' blessing, it's up to firms to decide whether to offer trading in the bitcoin-linked products and some may be reluctant to jump into a volatile asset class.

Yet many are diving in. Merrill and Wells Fargo are joining Charles Schwab and Robinhood Markets, which started offering the spot bitcoin ETFs shortly after their approval. UBS Group is also offering a number of bitcoin ETFs to some of its wealth management clients with brokerage accounts, Bloomberg reported in January.

Morgan Stanley is evaluating adding spot Bitcoin ETFs to its platform, according to CoinDesk. A representative for Morgan Stanley declined to comment.

Vanguard Group is among firms holding off, saying in a Jan. 24 blog post that "crypto is more of a speculation than an investment."

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A representative for Wells Fargo confirmed spot bitcoin ETFs are on offer — since their approval by the SEC — for unsolicited purchases, either through Wells Fargo Advisors or the bank's online WellsTrade platform. A representative for Bank of America declined to comment.

The moves come as bitcoin continued to rally to the highest price in more than two years. Bitcoin has jumped more than 40% already this year atop the successful debut of the ETF products, which directly hold the token. The batch of funds from the likes of BlackRock and Fidelity Investments went live on Jan. 11, wooing net inflows of about $7.4 billion to date.