Schwab Crypto Adds Solana, Avalanche and Chainlink Trading
The brokerage's crypto menu grows from two tokens to five. Every trade costs 0.75% of its dollar value, and accounts aren't offered in New York or Louisiana.
Charles Schwab clients can now buy and sell solana, avalanche and chainlink, the brokerage said Monday, taking its Schwab Crypto service from two tokens to five.
Until now, Schwab's direct crypto offer was bitcoin and ether. The three new listings are its first beyond those two.
What clients pay
Schwab charges 75 basis points, or 0.75%, on the dollar value of each trade. On a $1,000 purchase, that's $7.50. The coins sit in the same view as stocks and funds on Schwab.com, the Schwab Mobile app and thinkorswim, the company's trading platform.
Per the release's disclosures, the accounts are run by Charles Schwab Premier Bank, and the crypto in them isn't FDIC-insured or SIPC-protected (the two programs that cover bank deposits and brokerage accounts). Schwab Crypto isn't available in New York, Louisiana or U.S. territories.
Three different jobs
The new tokens do different things. Solana and Avalanche are blockchains that run apps and payments, and SOL and AVAX pay their fees. Chainlink is an oracle network, a service that feeds outside data such as prices into blockchain apps; LINK pays its node operators.
At 5:55 p.m. ET, solana traded near $86.89, avalanche near $8.64 and chainlink near $10.69, per CoinGecko.
A slow, staged rollout
Schwab Crypto opened to early-access clients in May and to all eligible retail clients in October. The company first said in late August it would add these three tokens, Unchained reported, without a date.
"We continue to expand Schwab Crypto to give clients greater choice and flexibility," said Joe Vietri, Schwab's head of digital assets. The release said more assets will come over time but didn't name any.
In our opinion: Schwab adds coins the way it adds anything, carefully and with a long disclosure page attached. About 11 weeks passed between the August plan and Monday's listings. The number to keep an eye on is that 0.75% fee, because it's what clients pay on every trade and what Schwab earns, and the next listing announcement will show whether the menu keeps growing.
Sources: Charles Schwab press release · Unchained: Schwab Opens Solana, Avalanche and Chainlink Trading · Crypto Briefing: Charles Schwab brings Solana, Avalanche and Chainlink to retail · CoinGecko: Solana · CoinGecko: Avalanche · CoinGecko: Chainlink
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