Charles Schwab CEO eyes spot Bitcoin trading by April 2026

Charles Schwab Corp CEO Rick Wurster is reportedly eyeing an April 2026 launch window to provide spot Bitcoin (BTC) trading services to Schwab clients.

According to RIABiz, Wurster cited a 400% increase in traffic to Schwab's crypto website as evidence of investor interest in digital assets. The CEO predicted:

“Our expectation is that with the changing regulatory environment, we are hopeful and likely to be able to launch direct spot crypto. Our goal is to do that in the next 12 months, and we are on a great path to be able to do that.”

The Schwab CEO's comments reflect the growing trend of traditional financial (TradFi) institutions adopting crypto products and offering services that blur the line between the digital asset world and TradFi.

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Rick Wurster assumed the helm at Schwab in 2025, and in a November 2024 Yahoo Finance interview, said the company was happy to provide services to clients who want to trade digital assets.

At the time, Wurster told the financial news outlet that Schwab wanted to offer crypto directly to its clients but was waiting for a positive regulatory catalyst.

Following the re-election of Donald Trump in the United States, Wurster said the financial services company anticipated a much better regulatory environment to expand its digital asset services.

The Schwab CEO previously said he did not own any cryptocurrency, adding that he felt "silly" for not investing in the nascent asset class as it has continued to provide outsized investment gains.

In January 2025, Charles Schwab partnered with the Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) to provide customized exchange-traded funds and cryptocurrency services for the upcoming "Truth.Fi" service.

Truth.Fi will encompass digital assets and traditional financial services as a proposed alternative to the legacy banking system.

TMTG CEO, and White House official, Devin Nunes said the goal of TMTG is to provide an option for individuals worried about unfair banking practices and "cancellation, censorship, debanking, and privacy violations committed by big tech and woke corporations.”

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