Crypto Finance, a subsidiary of Germany’s largest stock exchange operator Deutsche Börse, has signed a deal with Commerzbank to provide trading services for the bank’s corporate clients.
This partnership comes just two weeks after Crypto Finance reached a similar agreement with Zürcher Kantonalbank (ZKB) in Switzerland.
Commerzbank, Germany’s second-largest bank by branches, will offer custody services as part of the collaboration. The trading service, which focuses on Bitcoin and Ether, will be available to clients based in Germany.
“Our joint solution represents the highest level of security in the trading and custody of crypto assets, which is a standard we also share with the Deutsche Boerse Group,” said Gernot Kleckner, head of capital markets for corporate clients at Commerzbank. He added that this marks the first time the bank’s corporate clients can access opportunities in Bitcoin and Ether.
Commerzbank obtained a crypto custody license in November 2023, enabling it to offer a broad range of digital asset services. This move aligns with a broader trend of German banks embracing crypto services.
DZ Bank and Boerse Stuttgart collaboration
Separately, DZ Bank, Germany’s second-largest financial institution, has partnered with Boerse Stuttgart Digital to provide cryptocurrency trading and custody services to its cooperative bank network. This collaboration will allow 700 cooperative banks under DZ Bank to offer retail clients access to digital assets like Bitcoin and Ether.
The service will undergo a phased roll-out starting later this year, with select retail clients testing the platform before its wider implementation.
Boerse Stuttgart Digital, the crypto division of Boerse Stuttgart Group, will provide regulatory and technical infrastructure for DZ Bank’s new crypto services. Matthias Voelkel, CEO of Boerse Stuttgart Group, highlighted the division’s focus on “retail-customer-oriented” infrastructure solutions.
Germany’s largest federal bank, Landesbank Baden-Württemberg (LBBW), also plans to offer crypto custody solutions in partnership with Bitpanda, an Austria-based crypto exchange, by the second half of 2024.
This expansion mirrors moves by other players in the industry, such as Coinbase Custody, which opened an office in Ireland, and Fidelity Digital Assets, which launched a branch in the U.K. Germany’s largest lender, Deutsche Bank AG also applied for regulatory approval to operate as a cryptocurrency custodian in Germany. The Deutsche Bank’s digital asset custody prototype caters specifically to institutional clients to establish a seamless connection between them and the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem.
