Deutsche Bank seeks approval for institutional crypto custody

Deutsche Bank has applied for a German digital-asset custody license and is moving through the regulatory timeline under the EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework. Heinrich Frömsdorf, a Deutsche Bank spokesperson, indicated the bank expects to receive the MiCA license in October and plans to make the service available to initial clients later this year, subject to regulatory approval.

The planned custody service will initially cover Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and several stablecoins, including USDC, EURC and AllUnity EUR. The bank intends to add support for tokenized financial instruments at a later stage.

Deutsche Bank began work on custody capability in 2023 through a technology partnership with Taurus. Sabih Behzad, head of digital assets, has previously discussed the bank’s interest in the stablecoin market and the possibility of issuing its own token.

MiCA entered full enforcement on July 1, creating a single EU framework for crypto-asset service providers and issuers. Firms offering custody must meet the licensing and compliance requirements set by MiCA and by national supervisors.

Other German banks have introduced similar services. Landesbank Baden-Württemberg started offering institutional custody in April 2024 after partnering with Bitpanda, and DZ Bank received authorization from Germany’s BaFin under MiCA to operate its meinKrypto platform in December 2025.

Deutsche Bank is listed by the Financial Stability Board as a Global Systemically Important Bank. The institution has indicated the custody offering will be limited to institutional and corporate clients and that the launch schedule depends on completion of required legal and supervisory steps.