E*Trade plans zero-cost funds that only platform clients can buy

Katie Greifeld, Bloomberg News on Dec 17, 2024

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Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade is planning a suite of free funds, with a catch — only customers of the brokerage platform would be able to buy them.

The firm submitted plans on Monday for five mutual funds spanning stocks and bonds, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. While all five funds would be zero-cost, buying would be restricted to investors with “a self-directed account” at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley.

E*Trade follows in the footsteps of Fidelity Investments, which launched zero-fee index funds exclusive to their brokerage clients in 2018. The thinking goes that while a firm won’t turn a profit from offering a fund with a zero expense ratio, it may attract investors who then turn into paying clients for other parts of the business. That’s likely the logic that Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade is following with these planned products, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

“It’s designed to try and get people in the door,” Eric Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence said. “It speaks to the fact that it’s very competitive to get fingertips and eyeballs onto your exchange.”

E*Trade is just one of many trading platform options investors have to choose from after a number of fintech firms arose to challenge the traditional brokerages over the past few years. A Morgan Stanley spokesperson declined to comment.

The planned funds include the E*TRADE No Fee Large Cap Index Fund, the E*TRADE No Fee Total Market Index Fund, the E*TRADE No Fee International Index Fund, the E*TRADE No Fee Municipal Bond Index Fund and the E*TRADE No Fee U.S. Bond Index Fund.

Fidelity’s line-up of no-fee funds has found an audience, with the Fidelity Zero Total Market Index Fund now commanding nearly $26 billion in assets. While it’s unclear if the free funds have managed to bring in new clients to the brokerage platform, that kind of growth is impressive in the indexing business, according to Morningstar Research Services.

“Loss leaders induce people to come, stay, and be up- or cross-sold,” said Jeffrey Ptak, chief ratings officer at Morningstar Research Services.