Morgan Stanley Files Bitcoin and Solana ETFs

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Good Morning.

Morgan Stanley’s decision to file for spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs marks a clear step deeper into crypto. What stands out is not only the assets themselves, but the willingness of a major bank to put its own name on the line, signaling confidence in long term client demand and institutional relevance.

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In Today's Email:

• What Matters: Morgan Stanley Files Bitcoin and Solana ETFs 👀 

• Case Study: One Setup, Four Airdrop Farms 🔎 

• Governance & Features: Lighter Launches 24/5 Equity Perps 🚀 

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WHAT MATTERS

Morgan Stanley Files Bitcoin and Solana ETFs

State of play: Morgan Stanley has filed S 1 registration statements with the US SEC to launch spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs, marking a notable shift in institutional crypto adoption.

• The filings cover a Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust and a Morgan Stanley Solana Trust, both branded directly under the firm’s name.

• Market analysts described the move as unexpected but significant.

• Bloomberg and ETF analysts noted that the decision reflects growing client demand and could push other large asset managers to launch their own branded crypto ETFs.

• Industry executives echoed the view that crypto has become a strategic priority for major financial institutions.

• The move follows a policy change in late 2025 that allowed Morgan Stanley advisors to allocate up to 4% of aggressive client portfolios to crypto ETFs.

Why it matters: With strong early year inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs already exceeding $1.2B, the filings reinforce the view that crypto ETFs are rapidly becoming a mainstream institutional product rather than a niche offering.

Our take: Morgan Stanley putting its own name on crypto ETFs shows that digital assets are now a real business line, not an experiment.

For builders and investors: Builders should focus on products that are compliant and easy for big firms to use. Investors should pay attention to assets and infrastructure that institutions can confidently scale and distribute.

CASE STUDY

One Setup, Four Airdrop Farms

KirbyCrypto shared a simple airdrop farming setup that targets multiple ecosystems at once. The approach aims to earn potential rewards from Hyperliquid Season 3, Trade.xyz, Unit.xyz, and Tread.fi using a single workflow.

• The method uses Tread.fi’s market maker bot connected to a funded Hyperliquid account.

• After linking a wallet and syncing the Hyperliquid account, users deploy a bot on the XYZ100 pair, set margin and thresholds, and let it run.

• This allows users to stay active across several protocols simultaneously, maximizing points and airdrop exposure while minimizing time and effort.

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INSIGHTS

Strategy Shares Jump as MSCI Delays Decision on DATs

State of play: Strategy’s stock rose about 5% after MSCI said it will not, for now, exclude companies with large digital asset treasuries from its equity indexes.

• The decision removes near term uncertainty for crypto linked stocks that faced potential removal ahead of February’s index rebalancing.

• MSCI had been reviewing whether firms holding 50% or more of assets in digital assets should be treated like investment funds and excluded from indexes.

• Critics argued the proposal was arbitrary and risked distorting markets due to inconsistent accounting standards across regions.

While current index treatment remains unchanged, MSCI said it will continue consulting with investors and may introduce new criteria in a broader review of non operating companies.

• This keeps Strategy and other DAT firms included for now, easing fears of forced outflows tied to index removals.

FEATURES & GOVERNANCE UPDATE

Lighter Launches 24/5 Equity Perps

Lighter has rolled out 24 hour weekday trading for equity perpetuals, marking another step in its rapid expansion as a leading onchain perps exchange. The new setup replaces US market hour limits and is expected to move to full 24/7 trading in the future.

• The launch puts Lighter alongside both centralized and decentralized venues pushing equity style derivatives with crypto style flexibility.

• The goal is to give global traders continuous access, better liquidity, and the ability to use crypto collateral for traditional asset exposure.

• This reflects a broader trend of growing DEX market share as onchain perps continue to gain traction against centralized exchanges.

Other notable feature updates:

• Sonic Labs paused its ETF.

• Uniswap Labs executed UNIfication.

• Phoenix AI launched AlphaNet AI DEX.

• Spreads Finance announced its launch.

• Aerodrome completed a 964K AERO buyback.

• Jupiter announced the launch of Jupiter Mobile V3.

QUICK BITES

• Ripple reaffirms no IPO plans.

• Lighter rolls out 24/5 equity perps trading.

• Morgan Stanley files for spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs.

• Community banks sound alarm on YBS loophole in GENIUS.

• Sweeping crypto bill heads for Senate Banking Committee hearing.

• Brian Quintenz joins SUI Group board following failed CFTC chair bid.

• MSTR rallies 5% after MSCI says will not bar DATs 'for the time being.'

• Ethereum staking sees institutional return as validator exit queue collapses.

• Spot BTC ETFs report $697M in net inflows, largest daily total since October.

NOTEWORTHY READS & MEME

• Jake Chervinsky’s read on Tokens vs Equity.

• a16z crypto’s read on Privacy trends for 2026.

• defi_explora’s read on airdrop farming plans for 2026.

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Disclaimer: All the information presented in this publication and its affiliates is strictly for educational purposes only. It should not be construed or taken as financial, legal, investment, or any other form of advice.