How to move it
How to move your cash out of E*TRADE’s default sweep
E*TRADE (Morgan Stanley) pays 0.01% on uninvested cash by default (checked October 23, 2026). You don’t need a new account to fix that: two trades inside the account you already have do it.
Option 1: Treasury bills, bought at auction
Backed by the U.S. government and free of state income tax. Usually the most you can keep in a high-tax state, and with automatic rollover it runs on its own. New to them? Read the full Treasury bill guide.
- In your account, open the trade menu and find Bonds or Fixed income.
- Look for new-issue Treasuries or Treasury auctions and pick a bill. They come in 4, 6, 8, 13, 17, 26 and 52 weeks; 13 or 26 weeks is typical for cash.
- Enter the amount. Auction orders fill at the auction’s yield, so there’s no price to choose.
- If there’s an automatic rollover or reinvest option, turn it on, so the money doesn’t land back in the low-rate sweep when the bill matures.
- Place the order before the broker’s cutoff, often a day or so before the auction. The cash leaves your account on the issue date.
These steps hold at most brokers; E*TRADE’s exact menu names may differ. Its help pages are linked below.
Option 2: A money market fund
The simplest switch: one trade, and the money is usually available the next business day. Not FDIC-insured, but government and Treasury funds hold only government debt.
- Search the fund’s ticker in the trade screen and choose Buy. At this firm: a Morgan Stanley government or Treasury money market fund, bought manually.
- Enter a dollar amount. Check the fund’s minimum and whether the firm charges a fee to buy it.
- Ask whether it can be your default cash (“core” or “sweep”) option, so new deposits land there automatically. Some firms allow it; many don’t.
Before you move it
- Leave enough in the sweep for bills, transfers and trades you have coming up.
- T-bills pay their full yield if held to maturity. Sold early, they get the market price, which can be a little more or less.
- Money market funds aren’t FDIC-insured; the sweep usually is. Treasury bills are backed by the U.S. government.
- In an advisory account, ask whether the advisory fee is charged on cash. A 1% fee on cash earning little can cost more than it earns.
- Prefer not to use the broker? TreasuryDirect sells bills directly, with an automatic reinvest option.
E*TRADE’s own help pages
General information, not investment advice. Rates and menus change; confirm with E*TRADE before you trade. See what E*TRADE’s cash rate has cost you so far →