Charles Schwab opens Bitcoin access to 50 million clients

Charles Schwab announced it will offer Bitcoin services to about 50 million clients, allowing eligible accounts to hold Bitcoin and selected crypto assets with a maximum allocation of 7% of account value. The program is part of an effort by the firm to add digital-asset access to its retail brokerage services.

Eligible clients will be able to hold Bitcoin and selected crypto assets within their Schwab accounts, subject to the 7% cap. Schwab did not provide a precise start date for broad availability, nor a full list of supported tokens or the custodial arrangements to be used.

Short-term prediction-market pricing moved after the announcement. A market contract on whether Bitcoin will reach a new all-time high by June 30, 2026 was priced at 2.4% YES, up from 2.0% the previous day. A separate contract on Bitcoin reaching $115,000 in May showed a 0.5% YES probability, unchanged from the prior day. Longer-dated contracts were priced at 8.5% YES for September 30, 2026 and 17.5% YES for December 31, 2026.

Federal agencies, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, are reviewing rules and enforcement approaches for digital-asset custody, trading and licensing.

Several other large U.S. banks and brokerages have tested cryptocurrency custody and trading services. Market participants have cited institutional investments and approvals for spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds as potential catalysts for broader adoption and price movement.

The announcement arrives as jurisdictions such as Singapore and Switzerland promote regulatory frameworks and services to attract crypto-related capital and infrastructure. Custodians, asset managers and broker-dealers in the U.S. have expanded crypto capabilities over the past two years.

Charles Schwab is a major U.S. brokerage and wealth-management firm with tens of millions of retail accounts. The addition of Bitcoin access places selected digital assets under the firm’s operational and regulatory processes.