Germany’s Second Largest Bank to Offer Crypto Custody Services to Institutionals

DZ Bank – the second-largest German bank by assets – is all set to offer digital asset custody services.

The BaFin-regulated financial institution and custody provider has joined forces with Swiss firm Metaco and orchestration platform Harmonize for its upcoming digital currencies to its institutional clients offering.

• According to the official press release, Harmonize is designed to offer a versatile governance framework and has customizable risk and compliance controls “with full segregation of multiple business units and clients, guaranteeing isolation of policies, users, accounts, and assets.”
• Commenting on the development, DZ Bank’s Lead Solution Design Digital Custody Nils Christopeit said,

“In terms of our security, scalability, and future requirements of our digital asset custody initiative for institutional clients, starting with crypto securities as per the German eWpG, Metaco Harmonize has proven to be a powerful solution that is fit for purpose and can support our intended operating model.”

• Christopeit added that the platform was selected by DZ Bank through an extensive proof-of-concept and diligence process and that it has proven to be a powerful solution for the lender.
• For the uninitiated, DZ Bank happens to be one of Germany’s largest custodians, with €297 billion in assets under custody at the end of 2022.
• This isn’t the first time Metaco has collaborated with a prominent German player. In fact, the digital asset service provider partnered with the Frankfurt-headquartered DekaBank to launch a blockchain-based tokenization platform last month.
• Citibank and Societe Generale are some of the other major financial institutions that have joined hands with Metaco over the past year to provide institutional clients with access to digital asset offerings.

Featured Image Courtesy of GHA