NEW YORK – Ethereum prices climbed sharply Tuesday after online brokerage Moomoo began offering the digital asset under the ticker ETH.CC, widening access for millions of retail investors.
The ether token rose as much as 5.8% to an intraday high of $3,655 shortly after the U.S. market opened, according to CoinMarketCap data, before paring gains to about $3,590 by early afternoon. Trading desks told SourceRated activity spiked on the Futu Holdings–owned platform within minutes of its soft launch at 9:30 a.m. ET.
“Retail participation has been the missing ingredient in this year’s rally,” said Matteo Greco, a senior analyst at Fineqia International. “Moomoo’s rollout gives casual traders another on-ramp, and the price response shows that demand is there.”
Moomoo, best known for low-cost stock and options trading, said it will initially support spot transactions in ether with zero commission for the first 30 days. The company counts more than 21 million registered users across the United States, Singapore and Australia. A spokeswoman confirmed plans to add bitcoin trading “in the coming quarter” pending regulatory clearance.
The move comes as mainstream brokerages race to keep clients from drifting to dedicated crypto exchanges. Robinhood already offers several tokens, while Charles Schwab participates through a consortium that launched a bitcoin spot ETF in January. “We’re seeing a land-grab,” noted Sycamore Capital portfolio manager Amelia Ruiz. “Whoever secures mindshare now could dominate order flow when the next bull cycle peaks.”
Regulatory uncertainty remains a wildcard. The Securities and Exchange Commission last year warned Futu that its international business model might violate U.S. investor-protection laws. Moomoo said its crypto service is provided through a licensed third-party custodian and that customer assets will be held 1:1 in cold storage.
Market strategists are watching to see whether fresh retail flows translate into durable gains. Ether is up roughly 38% year-to-date, trailing bitcoin’s 53% advance amid speculation that an ether spot ETF could receive SEC approval as early as this summer. “If that happens, today’s pop could be just an appetizer,” Greco said. “But if regulation tightens, momentum could fade just as quickly.”
For now, traders appear willing to test the waters — and Moomoo’s entry is giving them a new channel to do so.