Deutsche Bank Files for Digital Asset Custody License
Deutsche Bank is a $1.4 trillion banking enterprise that has recently filed for a cryptocurrency license. After the announcement of the Bitcoin ETF application filed by BlackRock, many traditional financial enterprises have started to warm up to their crypto plans once again.
After a long crypto winter, it seems that more commercial interest has started to raise its head in the crypto sector. According to the financial analysts, it can have both good and bad implications for the average crypto investor.
The latest TradeFi firm to foray into the cryptocurrency sector is none other than Deutsche Bank. This firm is the biggest lender in Germany that is venturing into the virtual assets sector as per a recent Bloomberg report. As per the article, the bank has decided to apply for a virtual asset custodial license.
To this end, David Lynne the head of the commercial banking arm at Deutsche Bank has maintained that the banking enterprise is working on the virtual currency and custodial services business model. He also confirmed that the firm has submitted a formal application to the German regulation BAFIN.
Deutsche Bank to Target Corporate Banking Sector
Deutsche Bank director Lynne has told media that the application for the crypto custodial services is part of the plan for the bank to increase its revenue generated from the corporate banking sector.
It could mean that more cryptocurrency enterprises may be encouraged to set up shop in the territory citing the banking services support from the organization. The banking enterprise transformed into an official custodial services provider for the first time in 2020 for crypto enterprises.
However, the bank has refrained from sharing any details about the debut of these services. This is not only an attempt by Deutsche Bank to become more crypto-savvy.
In April this year, the asset management subsidiary DWS of the bank started a venture with Galaxy Digital. This partnership was geared towards introducing a new ETF to track the price movement of cryptocurrencies.
At present commercial activity in the cryptocurrency sector has started to heat up. To this end, a new cryptocurrency exchange namely EDX Markets has gone live recently. The firm is reportedly backed by some of the major financial enterprises such as Citadel and Fidelity.
The firm is set to list named services for main cryptocurrency projects such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin among others. The investment round for the firm was completed recently with the addition of new equity holders.
Some of the noteworthy equity holders in the firm are names like Charles Schwab and Sequoia Capital among others. The firm made its debut for the first time in September last year and it has finally opened its doors for business. The latest press release published by EDX Markets explains that the firm is planning to not extend its services to retail investors.
However, the firm will allow retail brokers to submit trade orders while the firm will work in association with third-party custodial services providers. Additionally, the firm has also maintained that it intends to set up a clearing house next year to make the trade settlements for its clients more convenient.
