(Bloomberg) -- Morgan Stanley is targeting $200 billion in wealth management client deposits, an almost 50% increase as it seeks to compete with commercial banks for the funds.
The firm will introduce certificates of deposits and structured CDs as well as expand its mobile cash-management tools, Greg Fleming, who leads the wealth management unit, said at an investor conference in Florida Tuesday. Fleming declined to set a date to meet the target.
Morgan Stanley has made lending and deposits a greater part of its strategy as it seeks to generate more revenue from brokerage clients. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management had $137 billion in client deposits at the end of 2014, about $9 billion of which still resided at Citigroup Inc., which is transferring funds over time as part of its sale of Smith Barney.
We want to offer cash-management capabilities that enable us to compete for the clients cash in the same way as any bank out there, and we think we have the technology and the capabilities to go do that for the first time, Fleming said.
Brokerage clients currently keep about 25% of their cash as deposits at Morgan Stanley, meaning theres significant potential growth, Fleming said.
The bank last year introduced an iPhone application that allows clients to pay bills and deposit checks on their mobile devices, Fleming said. The firm is releasing a similar application for Android devices this year, he said.
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