Charles Schwab said on Oct. 16 that it has completed a broad rollout of Schwab Crypto for retail clients, giving eligible customers direct access to Bitcoin and Ether trading.
BTC and ETH trading is now live for eligible clients
Eligible users can trade BTC and ETH through Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile and thinkorswim. Execution and secondary custody support are provided by Paxos. The fee is 0.75%, and individual trades can range from $1 to $2 million.
Client crypto holdings will appear within Schwab’s existing account system alongside stocks, bonds and ETFs.
Crypto transfers are being rolled out in phases
Schwab also started a phased launch of crypto deposit and withdrawal functions. The company has opened BTC and ETH deposit and withdrawal services to some clients, though the framework remains more restrictive.
New withdrawal addresses must be registered and then go through a 24-hour waiting period. Withdrawals are capped at three transactions every 24 hours, with a $5,000 limit per transaction. Monthly deposit limits can reach as high as $50 million. The service is not currently available to clients in New York, Louisiana, U.S. territories, or to international customers.
Three more assets are planned by the end of 2026
Schwab said it plans to add Solana, Avalanche and Chainlink by the end of 2026, expanding the range of crypto assets available on the platform.
CEO points to crypto and prediction markets as revenue drivers
At the company’s fall business update, Charles Schwab CEO Rick Wurster said crypto trading would become an important channel for expanding transaction-based revenue. He said the business, together with newer offerings such as prediction markets, would help the platform improve monetization efficiency tied to client assets and trading activity.
Schwab currently manages about $13.33 trillion in client assets and has 40.3 million active brokerage accounts, giving the firm a sizable installed customer base for its crypto business.
Schwab is extending its crypto push beyond ETF exposure
The company’s crypto strategy is moving from ETF exposure into spot trading and custody-linked transfers. Schwab said its clients already hold about 20% of the industry’s spot crypto ETF assets. With spot BTC and ETH trading now available and SOL, AVAX and LINK set to follow, competition between large traditional brokerages and crypto-native trading platforms is set to intensify.