Vanguard Opens Platform to Crypto ETFs in Major Shift: Bloomberg

What to know:

• Vanguard will allow crypto ETFs and mutual funds on its platform starting Tuesday, Bloomberg reported.
• The move gives 50 million clients access to regulated digital asset investment vehicles like those from rival BlackRock.
• Vanguard stood against offering crypto products to clients for years while rival asset managers like BlackRock, Fidelity jumped in with both feet.

Vanguard, one of the world's largest asset managers with roughly $11 trillion in assets under management, will begin allowing customers to trade cryptocurrency ETFs and mutual funds on its brokerage platform starting Tuesday, according to Bloomberg.

"Cryptocurrency ETFs and mutual funds have been tested through periods of market volatility, performing as designed while maintaining liquidity," Andrew Kadjeski, Vanguard's head of brokerage and investments, told Bloomberg. "The administrative processes to service these types of funds have matured; and investor preferences continue to evolve."

Vanguard said it will support most crypto ETFs and mutual funds that meet regulatory standards, similar to how it treats gold and other niche asset classes, the story said. Funds tied to memecoins or unsupported by the SEC will remain barred.

The firm added that it has no current plans to launch its own crypto products, according to the report.

The move gives Vanguard's 50 million clients access to regulated crypto funds like those from rival asset manager BlackRock. Crypto ETFs have become a key gateway for U.S. investors to gain exposure to digital assets.