Morgan Stanley (MS) Opens Blockchain Lab..."DeFi Vault Operating 24/7"

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Wall Street investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS) has officially launched its expansion into blockchain and virtual asset businesses by establishing an in-house Digital Asset Lab. The plan is to directly verify stablecoins, real-world asset tokenization, and decentralized finance (DeFi) technologies within an independent environment that blocks security risks to traditional bank core systems, and then integrate them with institutional financial infrastructure.

On September 29 (local time), virtual asset specialized media outlet Coingape reported, citing Bloomberg, that Morgan Stanley officially launched its 'Digital Asset Lab' to expand blockchain-based use cases into its banking business. This move is part of Morgan Stanley's in-house innovation lab network. It is designed to allow internal employees to safely research emerging technologies without exposing the bank's core computer network to risk.

Megan Brewer, Head of Market Innovation and Labs at Morgan Stanley, specifically disclosed the lab's key research directions in an interview. Brewer stated, "We plan to focus on exploring tokenized deposits, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), tokenized money market funds (MMFs), as well as DeFi Vault technology that can automate investment strategies 24/7." This strategy aims to systematize advanced financial techniques that automatically operate liquidity protocols based on smart contracts to suit the institutional environment.

While expectations are building on social media that Wall Street is moving towards a full on-chain transition, the actual focus is on building institutional infrastructure. The lab emphasizes B2B payments, cross-border fund management, and verifying the efficiency of collateral asset management through tokenized money market funds, rather than connecting with permissionless decentralized protocols for general retail investors. This move is analyzed as considering the characteristics of regulated banks, which must comply with strict guidelines from financial regulatory authorities, including the Federal Reserve (Fed).

Even before the establishment of this lab, Morgan Stanley has secured a diversified asset management lineup, including operating exchange-traded fund (ETF) products and supporting cryptocurrency trading through its online brokerage E*Trade. The gradual expansion of exposure to various virtual asset-related exchange-traded products (ETPs), such as XRP, in addition to Bitcoin spot ETFs, aligns with this trend of technological internalization. The digital transformation competition on Wall Street, which combines the stability of traditional finance with the processing speed of on-chain infrastructure, appears to be accelerating.

Global financial giants are now moving beyond simple asset investment to activate their own technology verification organizations, entering a race to capture market share. The market's attention is focused on whether Morgan Stanley's Digital Asset Lab can serve as a crucial bridgehead in innovating Wall Street's internal business systems into a digital regime, starting with stablecoins and real-world asset tokenization.

[Article Key Summary]

-Morgan Stanley (MS) has established an in-house Digital Asset Lab to experiment with stablecoins, real-world asset tokenization, and DeFi technology.

-Megan Brewer stated that tokenized deposits, CBDCs, and 24-hour automated DeFi vaults will be tested without core network risks.

-The lab's focus is on institutional B2B payment networks and optimizing tokenized MMF collateral, not on DeFi for general customers.

*Disclaimer: This article is for investment reference only, and we are not responsible for any investment losses based on it. The content should be interpreted for informational purposes only.*