Schwab Expands Crypto Plans With Solana, Avalanche and Chainlink

Charles Schwab is expanding its direct cryptocurrency offering beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum. The brokerage said on Aug. 27 that Solana, Avalanche, and Chainlink will become available through Schwab Crypto in the coming months.

The announcement comes as traditional financial firms deepen their exposure to digital assets. SOL also rallied sharply on the same day, reaching its highest level in roughly eight months as the broader crypto market recovery continued.

Schwab Says Expansion Will Give Users More Choices

According to the announcement, this is part of its plan to expand its digital asset offering in response to client demand. It noted that it will give clients more choices to build their digital asset portfolio within Schwab.

Speaking about the expansion, Schwab Head of Digital Assets Joe Vietri noted that it is consistent with the firm’s approach of giving clients access to familiar crypto assets alongside the tools and resources to make informed decisions.

With the move, the brokerage firm, with over $12 trillion in assets under management and 39 million users, is deepening its crypto operations. This comes at a time when traditional crypto exchanges are also venturing deeper into traditional financial products.

Three of the biggest crypto exchanges, Binance, Kraken, and Coinbase, already offer tokenized stocks on their platforms. Coinbase introduced tokenized equities last week, restricting access to users outside the US.

Interestingly, Schwab also plans to introduce additional crypto assets over time. However, its five crypto offerings show it is taking a more measured approach to the rollout.

Still, spot assets are not the only area where Schwab might soon be competing with crypto firms. The brokerage platform reportedly plans to offer prediction-market-like options contracts on the S&P 500.

While the firm did not confirm it, the Wall Street Journal report in June stated that Schwab is partnering with Cboe Global Markets on the product.  The firm’s CEO, Rick Wurster, had hinted at the possibility of entering prediction markets but ruled out entertainment or sports.

SOL Soars Above $100 as Crypto Market Maintains Recovery

Meanwhile, Schwab plans to include SOL, which corresponds with a massive 10% surge in the value of the digital asset. According to CoinMarketCap, the token reached a peak of around $109 today after it rose by more than 12%.

While SOL price has since retraced to $107, it is now up 45% in the past 30 days. This continues a recovery trend that is wiping out most of SOL’s losses this year. It is now down only 13% year to date.

The rest of the crypto market has also maintained the positive momentum that began last week’s recovery. Bitcoin got close to $81,000 today before pulling back, while Ethereum is also near $2,500.

The other tokens that Schwab also plans to add to its offering, LINK and AVAX, rose by 5% and 3.35%, respectively. Overall, the crypto market cap is up by 2% in the past 24 hours.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency markets can experience sharp price movements.