Morgan Stanley is acquiring ETrade Financial Corp. in a $13 billion deal that is certain to reshuffle the deck among financial services industry giants.
The all-stock deal, which was announced Thursday morning, will create a combined platform with $3.1 trillion in client assets, 8.2 million retail client relationships and accounts, and 4.6 million stock plan participants.
This would represent the largest acquisition by a U.S. bank in more than a decade.
The combination will significantly increase the scale and breadth of Morgan Stanley’s Wealth Management franchise, and positions Morgan Stanley to be an industry leader in wealth management across all channels and wealth segments.
ETrade has over 5.2 million client accounts with over $360 billion of retail client assets, adding to Morgan Stanley’s existing 3 million client relationships and $2.7 trillion of client assets.
Morgan Stanley’s full-service, adviser-driven model coupled with ETrade’s direct-to-consumer and digital capabilities will allow the combined business to provide best-in-class product and service offerings to support the full spectrum of wealth.
According to The Wall Street Journal, which apparently was given advance notice of the deal between the two publicly traded companies, Morgan Stanley sees the addition of ETrade as a way to better compete against the likes of Fidelity Investments and Charles Schwab Corp.
“We’ll take on Schwab. We’ll take on Fidelity,” Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman told the Journal.
Under the terms of the agreement, ETrade stockholders will receive 1.0432 Morgan Stanley shares for each ETrade share, which represents per share consideration of $58.74 based on the closing price of Morgan Stanley common stock on Wednesday.
The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.
From outstanding individuals to innovative organizations, find out who made the final shortlist for top honors at the IN awards, now in its second year.
Cresset's Susie Cranston is expecting an economic recession, but says her $65 billion RIA sees "great opportunity" to keep investing in a down market.
“There’s a big pull to alternative investments right now because of volatility of the stock market,” Kevin Gannon, CEO of Robert A. Stanger & Co., said.
Sellers shift focus: It's not about succession anymore.
Platform being adopted by independent-minded advisors who see insurance as a core pillar of their business.
RIAs face rising regulatory pressure in 2025. Forward-looking firms are responding with embedded technology, not more paperwork.
As inheritances are set to reshape client portfolios and next-gen heirs demand digital-first experiences, firms are retooling their wealth tech stacks and succession models in real time.
