Deutsche Bank has started offering crypto custody to institutional clients, formally entering the market for regulated digital-asset services in Europe. The service went live on Wednesday, according to Reuters, about two months after the bank first said it planned to roll it out once the regulatory process was complete.
The launch covers custody for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and selected stablecoins and e-money tokens, including USDC, EURC, and EURAU. Germany’s largest lender is now providing both safekeeping and transfer services for eligible clients, while additional digital-asset products remain under development.
What the service includes
Crypto custody refers to a regulated institution holding digital assets on behalf of clients and managing the related wallets and private keys. Deutsche Bank said its new offering uses multi-layer key management controls.
The bank’s initial product supports Bitcoin and Ethereum alongside three stablecoins and e-money tokens: USDC, EURC, and EURAU, a euro token from AllUnity. It currently includes safekeeping and transfers, but tokenized financial instruments are still on the roadmap rather than part of the live service.
Institutional focus only
The platform is not available to retail users. Deutsche Bank is directing the service at corporate and investment bank clients, including asset managers, hedge funds, brokers, and sovereign institutions.
That positioning gives the bank a direct role in serving professional digital-asset participants rather than the broader consumer crypto market. The move also places it among traditional European lenders building regulated infrastructure around custody and settlement for institutional customers.
A long regulatory path
The rollout follows a lengthy approval process. Deutsche Bank applied to Germany’s financial regulator, BaFin, in June 2023. During that period, Commerzbank obtained a custody license in 2023, and three other German applicants also received approval before Deutsche Bank’s service went live.
The bank publicly announced the custody product in September, saying at the time that the launch depended on completing the regulatory timeline. In October, Corporate Bank co-head Gerald Podobnik told reporters that Germany would be the first market for the service.
European reach and next steps
Deutsche Bank’s MiCA authorization now allows the service to be offered across all 30 states in the European Economic Area, extending the bank’s reach well beyond its home market. That gives the lender a regulatory basis for institutional digital-asset custody throughout the bloc.
The bank has said it plans to expand into Asian financial centers in 2027. It also aims to add stablecoin conversion services, tokenized deposits, and digital bond issuance, and has signed a memorandum of understanding with Deutsche Asset Management to explore broader digital-asset collaboration. According to the source report, the wider expansion is tied to Deutsche Bank’s target of 8% annual growth in corporate banking by 2028.
Source: beincrypto.com