Deutsche Bank To Provide Crypto Custody Services To Customers Via Partnership With Taurus

Updated: 15 September 2023

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Deutsche Bank will provide its customers with crypto custody services via a partnership with Swiss digital asset infrastructure firm Taurus.

The move underscores the growing prominence of digital assets in the financial world, and indicates the rising acceptance by mainstream financial titans of the need to provide customers with crypto services.

“As the digital asset space is expected to encompass trillions of dollars of assets, it’s bound to be seen as one of the priorities for investors and corporations alike,” said Paul Maley, global head of securities services at the German banking giant. “As such, custodians must start adapting to support their clients.”

We’re pleased to announce that Deutsche Bank has entered a global agreement with Taurus! 🤝Deutsche Bank will leverage Taurus custody and tokenization technology to manage cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, and digital currencies.https://t.co/HRJx76NvWt pic.twitter.com/EhTB3gsJgF

— Taurus (@taurus_hq) September 14, 2023

Significant Milestone For Deutsche Bank

The partnership marks a significant milestone for by Deutsche Bank, allowing it to hold a limited number of cryptocurrencies and tokenized versions of traditional financial assets for its clients, a bank spokesperson told Reuters.

The bank had said in a document published by the World Economic Forum in 2020 that it aims to start cryptocurrency trading. But the spokesperson told Reuters that such a goal is not in its ”immediate plans.”

“We are planning to seamlessly integrate Taurus’ technology into our existing IT infrastructure,” said Sabih Behzad, head of digital assets and currencies transformation at Deutsche.

Institutionalization of Crypto

Deutsche Bank’s move into the digital asset realm is part of a broader trend of institutionalization within the cryptocurrency space. As major financial institutions like BlackRock, Standard Chartered, BNY Mellon, and Societe Generale offer crypto custody services, it signifies a significant shift towards embracing digital assets within the institutional finance sector.

This is a big deal. BlackRock has over $10 trillion under management, this partnership will enable access to #Bitcoin for some of the largest institutional investors in the world. https://t.co/nIHvxJQ0lD

— David Marcus (@davidmarcus) August 4, 2022

Deutsche Bank: Bridging Digital Assets and Traditional Banking

The German bank’s goal is to create a comprehensive custody platform for institutional clients, providing a secure link between digital assets and traditional banking services. This platform will simplify asset management, enable value-added services, and ensure asset safety through institutional-grade storage with insurance-level protection, it said.

In February, it was reported that Deutsche Bank’s asset management division, DWS Group, was exploring the possibility of acquiring minority ownership stakes in two cryptocurrency firms, namely Deutsche Digital Holdings, a Frankfurt-based crypto exchange-traded products provider, and Tradias, a traditional finance market maker.

Earlier this year, Deutsche Bank also participated in Taurus’ $65 million Series B funding round alongside Credit Suisse, Pictet Group, and Arab Bank Switzerland.

Taurus, founded in 2018, specializes in enterprise-grade digital asset infrastructure, encompassing cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, NFTs, and digital currencies.