Charles Schwab announces the launch of "Schwab Crypto," allowing retail investors to buy and sell Bitcoin and Ethereum

American brokerage giant “Schwab Financial (Charles Schwab)” announced that its long-prepared cryptocurrency trading platform has officially launched, marking Schwab Financial’s first time opening the door for retail investors to directly buy and sell Bitcoin and Ether. This new service, called “Schwab Crypto,” is expected to be rolled out in phases over the coming weeks. Customers will be able to trade Bitcoin and Ether directly through dedicated crypto accounts linked to their existing brokerage accounts. In the past, Schwab clients could only “indirectly” participate in the crypto market through ETFs and derivatives; now, with spot trading opened up, it is undoubtedly a major milestone for Schwab Financial’s digital asset strategy.

Schwab stated that each transaction will be charged a fee of 75 basis points (0.75%), and the crypto accounts will be provided by its banking subsidiary, “Charles Schwab Premier Bank,” while Schwab will act as the asset custodian. As for trade execution and matching, these will be handled by blockchain infrastructure provider Paxos. However, during the initial launch of “Schwab Crypto,” there are still certain restrictions. Cryptocurrency withdrawals and deposits are not yet available. Investors must buy and sell Bitcoin and Ether directly on the Schwab platform. At this time, it is not possible to transfer funds in from an external wallet or other exchange, nor can the coins purchased be transferred out. In addition, due to local regulatory restrictions, residents of New York and Louisiana are currently unable to use the cryptocurrency trading service. Schwab emphasized that it will gradually expand the platform’s functions in the future based on market conditions, including adding support for more types of cryptocurrencies and enabling asset transfer features, but it did not provide a clear timeline. With the new platform going live, Schwab will compete head-on with crypto-native exchanges such as Coinbase, as well as with retail-favored trading apps like Robinhood; at the same time, it is also issuing a challenge to other traditional financial institutions that are preparing to move into the digital asset space.