Commerzbank has over 18 million users and 70,000 institutional clients. If permitted, it will be able to offer exchange services as well as custody and security for crypto-assets. Any company that wishes to provide Cryptocurrency services in Germany must first obtain approval from BaFin.
German banking giant Commerzbank applies for a crypto license
Germany’s largest bank admitted to applying for a cryptocurrency license early this year, making it the country’s first major bank to pursue Cryptocurrency.
A Commerzbank representative acknowledged to Börsen-Zeitung on April 14 that the bank “applied for the crypto custody license in the first quarter of 2022.” If permitted, it will be able to offer exchange services as well as custody and security for crypto-assets.
Commerzbank has over 18 million users and over 70,000 institutional clients, and the cryptocurrency service is said to be aimed at the latter.
Any company that wishes to provide Cryptocurrency services in Germany must first obtain approval from the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, also known as BaFin. This is being practiced since January 1, 2020.
Currently, just four organizations have been approved, but BaFin estimates that around 25 applications from corporations interested in starting crypto custody operations are pending.
Currently, just four organizations have been approved, but BaFin estimates that around 25 applications from corporations interested in starting crypto custody operations are pending.
The authority licensed Coinbase Germany first in June 2021, while Upvest, a Berlin-based financial technology business, was the most recently permitted in March.
Commerzbank has been involved in blockchain projects since 2018, and the following year, it was one of the first big banks to participate in some of the first transactions on a distributed ledger technology (DLT) secure lending network.
In August 2021, the company announced a collaboration to establish blockchain-based digital marketplaces for current asset classes such as art and real estate.
In 2021, Germany intends to implement a number of reforms and laws, as well as expand its use of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.
German investors are likewise enthusiastic about cryptocurrency. According to a March KuCoin study, 44 percent of Germans are “inspired to invest in cryptocurrencies,” and “37 percent of German crypto investors have traded cryptocurrencies for more than a year.”
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