Brokerage services giant Charles Schwab plans to roll out cryptocurrency spot trading in the first half of 2026, pushing it deeper into digital assets.
“We remain on track to launch our spot crypto offering in the first half of 2026, starting with bitcoin. and ether (ETH),” a company spokesperson told CoinDesk on Friday.
The company has opened a waiting list for customers wanting early access to what it calls a “Schwab Crypto” account, which will allow users to buy and sell the two largest cryptocurrencies. The company will offer the service through Charles Schwab Premier Bank, SSB.
The move builds on comments from CEO Rick Wurster, who said last July that Schwab intended to introduce cryptocurrency trading “very soon” in response to customer demand. He presented the effort as a way to put digital assets in the same account view as stocks and bonds, with the goal of achieving a more unified investment platform.
Schwab’s size could give it an advantage as it enters a market long dominated by crypto-native exchanges. The company reported $11.9 trillion in client assets in 2025, providing an integrated base of retail and institutional investors who may prefer to trade cryptocurrencies in a familiar brokerage environment rather than using standalone platforms.
The company already allows its clients to invest in cryptocurrency-related ETFs and trade Bitcoin futures on its platform. It also launched the Schwab Crypto Thematic Index (STCE), an ETF that tracks the performance of companies related to the digital assets sector.
