Uphold offers fractional US stock trading to crypto users
Crypto platform Uphold now offers US customers fractional shares in over 4,000 stocks and ETFs, signaling a broader industry push to merge digital assets with traditional equities as crypto trading volumes cool.
Uphold has introduced fractional share trading for more than 4,000 US stocks and exchange-traded funds. The service is initially available to the platform's American customer base. The company also plans to extend trading hours to operate 24 hours a day, five days a week.
Users can execute what the company terms "crypto-to-stock" trades. To facilitate these transactions, the platform first converts users' digital assets into US dollars before executing the equity purchase. “People want one app for all of their investing, crypto included,” Uphold's U.S. President Nancy Beaton said. “Uphold customers can now sell Bitcoin to buy Berkshire Hathaway shares in a single step on the app – with no clunky currency conversions and without needing to transfer funds between stablecoins or cash balances.”
The offering relies on a distinct corporate structure to navigate strict US financial regulations. Fractional shares are officially provided by Uphold Securities Inc., a registered broker-dealer and member of FINRA. The crypto-to-dollar conversions are handled separately by Uphold HQ, Inc., a Money Services Business registered with FinCEN. Both entities share common ownership but operate as legally separate companies, and users are charged an exchange fee for the currency conversion.
This expansion highlights a strategic pivot for digital asset platforms facing a broad downturn in altcoin and memecoin trading volumes. With a crypto-friendly US administration currently encouraging Wall Street's adoption of blockchain technology, exchanges are actively looking to bridge the gap between digital assets and traditional finance. Competitors like Robinhood and Backpack Securities are already moving in this direction, offering non-US users tokenized exposure to publicly listed companies.
While tokenized-equity trading remains restricted within the United States, market professionals widely view it as a major growth frontier. Developing this technology could eventually expand foreign investors' access to US-listed companies. For platforms like Uphold, integrating equities represents a critical effort to capture retail capital that might otherwise migrate to traditional brokerage accounts.
