Cryptocurrency trading platform Uphold on Tuesday announced the launch of access to more than 4,000 U.S. stocks and ETFs for American customers, including fractional shares where available. The move adds traditional securities to an environment historically built around digital assets, with the company planning to extend trading hours to 24 hours a day, five days a week.
Uphold will enable “crypto-to-stock” trades by first converting users’ digital assets to U.S. dollars, then using those dollars to buy equities. This structure keeps the crypto leg and the securities leg separate under two entities with common ownership: Uphold HQ, Inc., a Money Services Business registered with FinCEN, handles the conversion, while Uphold Securities Inc., a FINRA‑member broker-dealer, executes the securities trades. An exchange fee applies to the conversion.
“People want one app for all of their investing, crypto included,” said Nancy Beaton, Uphold’s U.S. President. “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 launch comes as altcoin and memecoin trading volumes have declined and Wall Street increasingly embraces digital assets. Crypto-native platforms face pressure to diversify revenue streams, while traditional brokers add crypto exposure. Uphold’s approach stops short of tokenized equities, but fits a broader trend toward single‑app, cross‑asset investing already seen internationally with Robinhood and Backpack Securities offering tokenized stock exposure to non‑U.S. users.
