Banks offering crypto in Germany and Europe
MiCA gave the EU one set of rules for crypto assets, and since then savings banks, cooperative banks and large universal banks have started to offer bitcoin and ether to their own customers. Each offer below names its technology partner and the permission behind it. Dated events are in the calendar below.
Germany: cooperative banks, savings banks and Landesbanken
The Volksbanken and Raiffeisenbanken offer meinKrypto in the VR Banking App, with bitcoin, ether, litecoin and cardano; DZ BANK holds the MiCA authorization, and Boerse Stuttgart Digital keeps the coins. The Sparkassen decided to offer bitcoin and ether in the Sparkasse app, built by DekaBank, which already trades crypto for institutional clients.
Two banks started with companies. Commerzbank holds bitcoin and ether for corporate clients under its own custody license and trades through Crypto Finance. LBBW builds custody and trading for corporate clients on Bitpanda's technology. On the retail side, Santander's digital bank Openbank launched crypto trading in Germany on September 16, 2025, with bitcoin, ether, litecoin, polygon and cardano, a fee of 1.49 percent per trade and no custody fee, according to the Santander press release.
Europe: France and Belgium
In France, Groupe BPCE switched on crypto trading in the apps of Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Épargne on December 8, 2025, through its subsidiary Hexarq. Cointelegraph reported a monthly fee of 2.99 euros and a trading fee of 1.5 percent, with about two million customers in the first wave and the full retail base of twelve million to follow.
In Belgium, KBC announced bitcoin and ether trading on its investment platform Bolero, with Crypto Finance as partner. The model is closed: customers cannot move coins to or from outside wallets, and KBC keeps control of the private keys.
Build, buy and the permission
A bank either builds the service or buys it. Commerzbank and DekaBank hold the coins on their own infrastructure; the Volksbanken, LBBW and KBC rely on a specialist for custody or trading, as described on the page on crypto as a service. The specialist holds its own license for what it does.
For the bank itself there are two routes under MiCA. A credit institution can notify its supervisor and then provide crypto-asset services, explained on the page on MiCA Article 60. A firm without a banking license needs a full authorization, described on the page on the CASP license. Openbank used a Spanish MiCA license and passports it to Germany.
Upcoming digital asset events in Germany
Banks and crypto at events with Finance Loop
Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank and DZ Bank spoke on the payments panel of the Frankfurt Forum on Digital Assets & Applications, and DekaBank on its panel on DLT market infrastructure. Custody and MiCAR compliance were on the program of the Forum für Digitale Vermögenswerte, where Finance Loop was a partner.
Investment & Digital Assets
Risk & Compliance
Which German banks offer crypto?
The Volksbanken and Raiffeisenbanken through meinKrypto, the Sparkassen through the DekaBank offer, Commerzbank and LBBW for corporate clients, and Openbank for private customers. DekaBank trades crypto for institutional clients.
Do banks need a MiCA license to offer crypto?
A credit institution does not need a separate license. It notifies its supervisor at least 40 working days before the first service under Article 60 of MiCA. A firm without a banking license needs a full CASP authorization.
Can a bank hold crypto for its clients?
Yes. Commerzbank and DekaBank hold crypto custody licenses under the German Banking Act, and banks that buy the service rely on licensed custodians such as Boerse Stuttgart Digital.
Banks offering crypto and Finance Loop
Finance Loop covers the crypto offers of banks in its Investment & Digital Assets track and the permissions behind them in its Risk & Compliance track. DZ BANK is an event and network partner of Finance Loop, and Finance Loop runs events on custody and digital assets in Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin and Hamburg.
Finance Loop is a professional network and has the goal of driving the adoption of emerging technologies in finance, such as AI, digital payments, cloud and blockchain solutions. Finance Loop helps its members build skills and personal networks in these fields: Investment & Digital Assets, Payments & Digital Money, Digital Infrastructure & Sovereignty, and Risk & Compliance.