• New service will provide institutional and corporate clients in Europe with secure custody of selected digital assets
• Go-live with first clients this year subject to the completion of the applicable regulatory timeline

Deutsche Bank is set to launch its digital asset custody solution this year, subject to the completion of the applicable regulatory timeline. The new custody service will provide institutional and corporate clients in Europe with secure and regulated custody services for selected digital assets.

“Digital assets are not a replacement for the traditional financial system but an important complement to it. We see them as new rails that can coexist with existing market infrastructures while benefiting from the trust, security and safeguards that regulated financial institutions provide. Our aim is to offer clients a secure and regulated gateway to this evolving market,” said Gerald Podobnik, Co-Head Corporate Bank, Deutsche Bank. “The service will be further developed in line with client demand, regulatory requirements and the bank’s risk appetite”, said Podobnik.

The new digital asset custody solution will allow clients to safeguard their digital assets and transfer digital assets to third parties. Deutsche Bank will manage the wallets and private keys on clients’ behalf. This will reduce the need for clients to build and maintain their own custody infrastructure.

At launch, Deutsche Bank will support a selected range of digital assets, including Bitcoin and Ether, as well as selected stable coins or e-money tokens, including USDC and EURC, EURAU. The range of supported assets may be expanded over time, subject to client demand and the bank’s product-approval, risk management and regulatory processes. Tokenized financial instruments are also included in the roadmap.

Institutional-grade security and controls

Deutsche Bank’s solution has been designed around multiple layers of security and operational control within a strict governance. These include secure key generation and hardware-based protection, segregation of duties, multi-person approval processes, separate warm and cold storage environments, a redundant technical setup, and controlled backup and recovery arrangements.
The new service will use selected external technology and infrastructure providers for defined technical components.

Initial focus on institutional and corporate clients in Europe

The initial target group comprises clients of Deutsche Bank’s Corporate Bank and Investment Bank, including corporates, asset managers, hedge funds, custodians, brokers and sovereign institutions. Client onboarding will be subject to the bank’s criteria, due-diligence requirements and risk appetite.

Source: Deutsche Bank