Analysts predict Charles Schwab will eventually offer its own Bitcoin ETF

As Fidelity's spot Bitcoin ETF battles with BlackRock's offering for the top slot and Vanguard shies away from crypto altogether, multi-trillion dollar asset manager Charles Schwab has so far staked out a centrist position. Schwab customers are able to buy shares in all approved spot Bitcoin ETFs, but Schwab has yet to create a propriety offering. 

However, that may soon change in the future, experts predict, as Schwab weighs the advantage of moving second in a field where other entrants rushed to be first. "The customers are so loyal and products are so cheap they don't have to be in any rush. Rain or shine, the flows come in,” Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas told RIABiz.

Balchunas speculated that Schwab's delay may allow the firm to offer lower fees than its competitors. "They may shock the world and offer something that is 10-basis-points in a few months," he said. 

On X, expert Nate Geraci predicted that an offering from Schwab could come sooner rather than later. "I say it’s already [a] foregone conclusion," Geraci wrote. 

Schwab, unlike Vanguard, has shown some enthusiasm towards the crypto space after initially writing off cryptocurrencies as too speculative for investors. The asset manager has backed the EDX Markets exchange, which went live in June 2023, along with Fidelity and Citadel Securities. 

Schwab also offers an ETF that invests in crypto-related companies, such as Coinbase, Microstrategy, and Riot Platforms, but does not hold any digital assets itself. The fund is currently up 19% from its price at launch in August, 2022.