Deutsche Bank began offering digital asset custody services to paying institutional and corporate clients on Wednesday, enabling them to store and transfer bitcoin, ether and a limited set of stablecoins through the bank’s own infrastructure. The German lender manages the wallets and private keys on behalf of clients, removing the need for institutions to build and maintain their own custody systems.

The service, first outlined on September 16, became operational after the bank secured the required regulatory clearances. It is booked out of Deutsche Bank AG in Frankfurt and is available in Germany, with cross-border servicing across Europe through passporting arrangements under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation.

Supported Assets and Core Features

At launch the platform supports bitcoin, ether, USDC, EURC and EURAU. Clients can hold the assets, move them between warm and cold storage, and transfer them to third parties. Private keys are stored in hardware security modules. The offering includes multi-factor authentication, segregation of client assets and customizable multi-party approval workflows for transfers.

Access is provided through the bank’s Autobahn multi-channel gateway or its Corporate Bank portal. Target clients include institutional investors, multinationals, corporations, governments, sovereigns and wealth managers. Retail customers are not eligible. The bank has not disclosed the identity of its first clients, the number of sign-ups or the fees charged for the service.

Crypto assets held under the arrangement are not covered by deposit-guarantee schemes that protect eligible bank deposits. The bank has stated that further capabilities, including additional assets and tokenized financial instruments, may be added according to client demand and regulatory approvals.

Regulatory Path and Technology Foundation

Deutsche Bank applied for a digital asset custody license in Germany in June 2023. Its listing for crypto custody and transfer services under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation was recorded on October 12, with Germany’s BaFin as the primary regulator. The entry appears in the European Securities and Markets Authority register, allowing the bank to serve eligible clients across the European Economic Area.

The technical foundation was developed in partnership with Swiss digital asset infrastructure provider Taurus, a collaboration that began in 2023. The bank has indicated that certain technical functions rely on external providers while it retains overall control of the custody environment.

Collaboration with Asset Management Arm

Alongside the custody launch, Deutsche Bank signed a memorandum of understanding with Deutsche Asset Management, the money manager it largely owns and which was previously known as DWS. The agreement is intended to explore commercial and technical collaboration in the digital asset space, including tokenized money market funds, crypto exchange-traded commodities and stablecoins built around the new custody platform.

Deutsche Asset Management oversaw approximately 1.22 trillion euros in assets as of September 30. The firm has indicated plans to launch a tokenized money market fund. It already backs AllUnity, the joint venture that issues the EURAU stablecoin supported by the custody service.

Expansion Plans and Broader Context

The bank intends to extend the platform to Asian financial centers in 2027. Additional services under consideration include stablecoin conversion, tokenized deposits and support for digital bond issuance. The digital asset initiative forms part of a wider corporate banking growth strategy that targets compound annual revenue growth of about 8 percent between 2025 and 2028.

The launch places Deutsche Bank among a growing group of large traditional banks providing regulated crypto custody. The service is currently limited to storage and transfer functions. Trading, exchange services and tokenized securities are not part of the initial offering.

Bitcoin traded near 73,900 dollars on Wednesday morning, close to its lowest level since August following a stronger-than-expected U.S. inflation report the previous day.