Charles Schwab launches BTC/ETH

Brokerage accounts are where most investors already keep the serious money. That has been the weird gap in crypto for years — people could buy a spot bitcoin ETF at Schwab, or trade crypto futures, but if they wanted to own actual bitcoin or ether directly, they usually had to leave the brokerage and open a separate crypto-native account. On May 13, Charles Schwab started closing that gap. It began rolling out Schwab Crypto, giving selected U.S. retail clients direct spot trading in bitcoin and ethereum inside the same Schwab ecosystem they already use. ### What actually launched today? This is not a vague “crypto strategy” update. It is a live product rollout. Schwab said in April that Schwab Crypto would start reaching retail clients in the coming weeks, and on May 13 that rollout began for an initial group of U.S. customers. At launch, the product offers direct trading in just two assets — bitcoin and ether. (coindesk.com) ### Why is direct trading different? Because ETFs are not the same thing as owning the coins. A spot bitcoin or ether ETF gives price exposure through a fund wrapper. Direct trading gives the customer the asset itself inside a dedicated Schwab Crypto account. That matters to investors who want crypto to sit next to their stocks, cash, and retirement assets without splitting their financial life across multiple platforms. Schwab has been pretty explicit that many clients wanted exactly that. (pressroom.aboutschwab.com) ### Where does it live? Basically everywhere Schwab already wants active clients to spend time. The company said customers will be able to view and trade crypto alongside traditional investments on Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile, and thinkorswim. That sounds like a product detail, but it is really the point of the whole launch — Schwab is not building a separate crypto island. It is absorbing crypto into the normal brokerage workflow. (pressroom.aboutschwab.com) ### What does Schwab charge? The headline fee is 75 basis points on the dollar value of each trade. That is 0.75%. Schwab framed that as among the lowest in the industry, though the real comparison depends on whether you are stacking it against crypto exchanges, spread-based brokers, or ETF expense ratios. Still, the number matters because pricing is one of the few concrete levers legacy brokerages can use to pull crypto users away from Coinbase, Robinhood, or Kraken. (pressroom.aboutschwab.com) ### Why only bitcoin and ether? Because they are the least controversial starting point. Schwab said those two together represent roughly three-quarters of total crypto market capitalization. If you are a giant brokerage trying to enter the market without making the risk committee panic, BTC and ETH are the obvious first pair — the most liquid, the most familiar, and the easiest to explain to mainstream clients. Schwab also said it plans to add more cryptocurrencies over time. (pressroom.aboutschwab.com) ### What is the catch? Direct crypto at Schwab still does not look like a full crypto exchange. For now, the rollout is phased, the asset list is tiny, and transfer capabilities for deposits and withdrawals are planned for later rather than available from day one. Schwab’s own risk language is also blunt — these assets are speculative, volatile, not FDIC insured, and not protected by SIPC. So yes, this is mainstreaming crypto, but in a tightly controlled, heavily disclosed form. (pressroom.aboutschwab.com) ### Why does this matter beyond Schwab? Because scale changes the story. Schwab is one of the biggest brokerages in the U.S., with more than $11 trillion in client assets, and crypto-native platforms have long benefited from the fact that traditional brokers stopped short of direct ownership. That wall is coming down. Fidelity moved earlier. Robinhood already spans both worlds. Now Schwab is making the same convergence trade from the other direction. (pressroom.aboutschwab.com) ### Bottom line? This is less about two coins than about distribution. Schwab is telling mainstream investors they no longer need a separate crypto venue to buy bitcoin or ether directly. If the rollout broadens smoothly, the bigger effect will be simple — crypto becomes one more line item in the standard brokerage account. (coindesk.com) (cnbc.com)