Charles Schwab rolled out a spot Bitcoin trading platform Wednesday for its retail clients in the U.S., marking a major shift for the brokerage that had previously kept crypto exposure limited to ETFs and futures. The new service, branded Schwab Crypto, lets users buy and sell Bitcoin directly through their Schwab accounts — except in New York and Louisiana. Schwab, which reported $11.77 trillion in client assets and 39.1 million active brokerage accounts as of March 2026, is charging a 75-basis-point fee per trade.
How the service works
Charles Schwab Premier Bank acts as custodian for the Bitcoin, while Paxos handles the underlying trade execution. That structure keeps settlement and custody separate from Schwab's main brokerage operations. The 0.75% fee is competitive with many crypto-native exchanges but higher than the zero-commission model Schwab is known for on stocks and ETFs.
Why the move matters
Schwab had been one of the last major retail brokerages to hold out on direct crypto trading. JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley already offer or plan similar services — part of a broader wave where over 60% of large U.S. banks now have Bitcoin-related offerings. BlackRock's IBIT ETF alone held roughly $54 billion in assets under management by early 2026, with institutions holding more than 513,000 BTC through ETFs. The appetite is clearly there.
The timing is good. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs pulled in $2.44 billion in net inflows during April 2026, and the streak of positive flows stretched nine consecutive days into May. Retail investors, who largely sat out the early ETF action, now have a familiar on-ramp.
What Schwab is leaving on the table
The service won't be available in New York and Louisiana — two states with stricter crypto regulations. That's a meaningful gap. New York alone accounts for roughly 8% of Schwab's active brokerage accounts, based on national population share. The company didn't say when or if it would expand to those states.
Schwab also isn't offering other cryptocurrencies yet. Only Bitcoin. For a firm that built its brand on low-cost broad-market access, the single-coin start feels cautious. But given the regulatory landscape, cautious might be the right call.
The real test will come when clients try to move their Bitcoin off the platform. Schwab hasn't detailed withdrawal policies. That's the unresolved question — and likely the next thing to watch.
