Deutsche Bank launches digital asset custody for clients

Deutsche Bank announced Wednesday that its digital asset custody service has begun serving paying clients as European banks expand their presence in digital markets.

Germany’s largest lender first revealed plans for the custody service in September, targeting institutional and corporate clients across Europe subject to regulatory approval. The bank stated the service would handle safekeeping and storage of digital assets, including bitcoin and ether.

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

The bank previously indicated plans to expand the service to Asia.

Deutsche Bank also announced Wednesday it signed a memorandum of understanding with Deutsche Asset Management, the money manager it mostly owns and which was recently known as DWS. The agreement aims "to explore comprehensive commercial and technical collaboration opportunities in the digital asset space."