Morgan Stanley has filed amended applications with the SEC for two spot crypto ETFs — an Ethereum fund under ticker MSSE and a Solana fund under ticker MSOL, each carrying a proposed annual fee of 0.14%. That undercuts every competing product in the U.S. market, whether live or pending approval.
The numbers are stark. Grayscale's Mini Ethereum Trust, previously the cheapest in its class, charges 0.15%. Franklin Templeton's SOEZ Solana ETF sits at 0.19%. The gaps look small in isolation, but in a market where funds hold hundreds of millions in assets, a single basis point translates into real dollars for both investors and managers competing for flows.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas called the filing "the lowest among ETH and SOL products worldwide." Both funds are targeting NYSE Arca as their listing venue.
The filings also build in a staking mechanism. Five percent of staking rewards go to the staking providers and custodians, while the rest stays inside each fund. That's a meaningful addition: staking income can offset operating costs, potentially pushing the effective expense ratio below the stated 0.14%.
The dynamic mirrors what happened with Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024. When dozens of applications landed simultaneously, managers raced each other toward zero on fees. Grayscale held at 1.5% and watched tens of billions walk out the door. The lesson stuck. Now, with Ethereum and Solana, the starting prices are lower and the competition is front-loaded rather than reactive.
Neither MSSE nor MSOL has a confirmed launch date. The SEC is still reviewing both applications. What's clear is that Morgan Stanley is opening at the market floor — a move that either sets the new standard or forces rivals to respond before the products even trade.
