Deutsche Bank launches digital asset custody service for institutional clients

Deutsche Bank has launched its digital asset custody service for paying clients, offering safekeeping and storage of assets such as bitcoin and ether. The service initially targets institutional and corporate clients in Europe, with plans to expand to Asia.

FRANKFURT – Deutsche Bank said on Wednesday that its digital asset custody service had gone live for paying clients, as European banks show increasing openness to digital markets. Germany's largest lender initially announced in September that it planned a custody service for institutional and corporate clients in Europe, pending regulatory approvals.

The service supports the safekeeping and storage of digital assets, including bitcoin and ether. Paul Maley, global head of trust and securities services at Deutsche Bank, said: "In the medium term we aim to deliver a fully integrated, regulated ecosystem that supports the custody, tokenisation, and settlement of digital assets."

Deutsche Bank has previously told Reuters it wanted to expand the offering to Asia. The bank also said on Wednesday that it had entered into a memorandum of understanding with Deutsche Asset Management, the money manager it mostly owns and that until recently was known as DWS. The agreement is "to explore comprehensive commercial and technical collaboration opportunities in the digital asset space."