Deutsche Bank secured authorization from Germany's Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) for its digital asset custody service, with the approval confirmed on the European Securities and Markets Authority's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulations (MiCA) register.
The regulatory sign-off lets Deutsche Bank launch crypto custody in Germany before expanding across Asian financial centers starting in 2027.
Gerald Podobnik, co-head of Deutsche Bank's corporate bank, said the digital asset economy—which holds hundreds of billions in stablecoins—is driving the bank's expansion. The custody service supports the bank's target of 8 percent compound annual growth through 2028.
The initial offering covers Bitcoin and Ether, plus stablecoins including Circle USDC, EURC, and AllUnity EUR.
Deutsche Bank partnered with cryptocurrency infrastructure platform Taurus in September 2023 to build out its custody capabilities. The bank had signaled it expected BaFin approval in October under the MiCA framework.
Deutsche Bank has not disclosed which specific Asian financial centers it will target first.
