Frankfurt and New York
Frankfurt and New York each have a central bank at their core: the European Central Bank in Frankfurt and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which runs the market operations of the US central bank. The Deutsche Bundesbank keeps 1,236 tonnes of German gold in the vaults of the New York Fed, more than a third of its reserves.
Since Brexit, the large banks from New York run their EU business from Frankfurt, where J.P. Morgan SE, Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE and Morgan Stanley Europe SE have their seats. For a fintech, crypto firm or bank from the United States, Frankfurt is a route into Germany and the other member states of the European Union. A license from New York or Washington does not count in the EU, and a German license from BaFin reaches every other member state.
US banks with their EU seat in Frankfurt
J.P. Morgan SE is the EU bank of JPMorganChase, with its headquarters in Frankfurt and total assets of 399.2 billion euros at the end of 2025. JPMorganChase calls it the largest international bank in Germany, with about 1,000 employees in Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg and Munich. On 20 May 2026 J.P. Morgan SE also launched its digital bank Chase in Germany, starting with a savings account and planning current accounts, investments and loans by 2028.
Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE has its registered office in the Marienturm in Frankfurt and answers directly to ECB Banking Supervision, as does Morgan Stanley Europe SE from its office in Große Gallusstraße. Citi runs its EU investment bank Citigroup Global Markets Europe AG from Börsenplatz in Frankfurt. In the other direction, Deutsche Bank bought the New York bank Bankers Trust in 1999 and runs its business in the Americas from One Columbus Circle in Manhattan.
German gold at the New York Fed
The Deutsche Bundesbank holds 1,236 tonnes of gold at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, 36.6 percent of its reserves. Another 1,710 tonnes lie in Frankfurt and 432 tonnes at the Bank of England in London, the figures the Bundesbank gave in August 2017 after completing its gold transfers.
From 2013 to 2017 the Bundesbank moved 300 tonnes of gold from New York and 374 tonnes from Paris to Frankfurt, three years earlier than planned. Since then half of the German gold has been stored in Frankfurt, and the rest stays at the two trading centers abroad.
From a US license to an EU license
A state money transmitter license, a New York BitLicense or a federal bank charter gives no access to customers in the EU. A payment or e-money institution from the US needs an authorization under the PSD2 rules, and a crypto firm needs a CASP license under MiCA. A stablecoin issuer approved under the GENIUS Act of July 2025 still needs an EU license as a bank or e-money institution before it may issue an e-money token in the EU.
In Germany the license comes from BaFin, and a BaFin license can be used across the EU through EU passporting. US banks that take deposits, lend or give guarantees to EU clients need an authorized EU branch from 11 January 2027 under Article 21c of Directive (EU) 2024/1619. A US group with its own EU bank in Frankfurt, such as J.P. Morgan SE, serves its EU clients through that subsidiary.
Upcoming finance and fintech events in Frankfurt and Europe
Why is German gold stored in New York?
The Bundesbank keeps part of its gold in New York and London so that it can exchange gold for foreign currencies at the trading centers abroad within a short time. It set out this reason in its storage plan of January 2013, which also fixed the goal of keeping half of the reserves in Frankfurt.
Does a US stablecoin license count in the EU?
A license under the GENIUS Act does not count in the EU, because MiCA requires every issuer of an e-money token to hold an EU authorization as a bank or e-money institution. The rules for stablecoins in the EU and the US therefore require two separate approvals.
Frankfurt contacts for teams from New York
Finance Loop is a professional network for emerging technologies in finance with more than 4,000 members, built in collaboration with Frankfurt Main Finance and TechQuartier. Finance Loop events in Frankfurt bring visitors from New York together with banks, asset managers, supervisors and fintechs in Germany.
A team from New York can join a Finance Loop delegation to events such as Frankfurt Digital Finance and get personal introductions from the Finance Loop team. Anyone working in finance, IT or AI can sign up for the free Network Membership.
Frankfurt, New York and Finance Loop
Finance Loop runs its events in Frankfurt, where the EU banks of the large New York groups have their seats, and brings teams from the US together with banks, supervisors and fintechs there. Teams from New York can meet Finance Loop members at events in Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin and Hamburg.
Finance Loop is a professional network and has the goal of driving the institutional use of emerging technologies in finance, such as AI, tokenization, stablecoins, and DeFi. 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.