Key Highlights
- Deutsche Bank plans to launch crypto custody for institutional and corporate clients in Europe later this year.
- The service will initially support Bitcoin, Ether, USDC, EURC and EURAU, subject to regulatory approval.
- The bank will hold clients’ wallets and private keys, with plans to expand into more digital assets and tokenized financial instruments.
Deutsche Bank plans to launch a crypto custody service later this year, giving institutional and corporate clients in Europe a way to hold digital assets through the bank.
In a press release published on Wednesday, September 16, the bank said that the service will initially support Bitcoin, Ether and selected stablecoins, but still needs regulatory approval before it can go live.
It said that the new service is being built for companies and large financial institutions that want to hold crypto without having to create their own systems to store and protect it.
Deutsche Bank will manage clients’ wallets and private keys on their behalf, reducing the need for customers to build and maintain their own custody infrastructure. The bank expects the service to go live with its first clients this year, once the required regulatory steps are completed.
Bitcoin and stablecoins at launch
At launch, the service will support Bitcoin and Ether, along with selected stablecoins or e-money tokens, including USDC, EURC and EURAU.
Deutsche Bank plans to add more digital assets over time. It also has plans to support tokenized financial instruments, which are traditional financial assets represented on a blockchain.
For institutions, crypto custody is an important part of entering the digital asset market. Instead of managing private keys themselves, clients can leave that responsibility with a bank.
Deutsche Bank said the service will use several controls to protect clients’ assets. These include hardware protection for private keys, separate responsibilities for staff, multiple approvals for certain actions and a mix of warm and cold storage. The bank will also have backup and recovery systems in place.
Who can use the new service
The service will target clients connected to Deutsche Bank’s Corporate Bank and Investment Bank in Europe.
These include companies, asset managers, hedge funds, custodians, brokers and sovereign institutions. Customers will have to go through the bank’s normal checks before gaining access to the service.
Gerald Podobnik, Deutsche Bank’s co-head of corporate bank, said digital assets are “not a replacement for the traditional financial system but an important complement to it.” He said the bank sees digital assets as new rails that can work alongside existing financial systems while using their trust, security and safeguards.
Deutsche Bank’s crypto plans
The planned launch comes after years of work by Deutsche Bank in the digital asset sector. The bank first revealed plans for a crypto custody service in 2023 and later worked with Taurus, a digital asset infrastructure company, as it developed its plans.
The move also comes as European banks expand their crypto services following the implementation of the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets, or MiCA, rules. Banks such as Standard Chartered and BBVA have also moved into crypto custody and other digital asset services.
Deutsche Bank’s service will therefore give European institutions another way to manage crypto through a traditional bank. However, the final launch depends on regulatory approval, while the assets supported by the service can change based on customer demand, regulatory requirements and the bank’s risk controls.
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