Deutsche Bank crypto: MiCA notification in 29 countries

In the ESMA register of crypto-asset service providers, Deutsche Bank has been listed since the 30 October 2026 file with 29 other countries alongside Germany: the 26 other EU member states, plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The entry is dated 12 October 2026 and labelled Article 60, so it is a notification to the supervisor BaFin and not the Article 63 route for an authorisation. The bank is listed for two services: custody and administration of crypto-assets on behalf of clients, and transfer services for crypto-assets on behalf of clients.

This is a follow-up to our piece on German banks in the MiCA register: 19 notifications. In that piece Deutsche Bank was still listed with Germany as its only country. Below you can read what the file says now, what a notification under Article 60 allows, and what the register does not tell you.

Deutsche Bank in the MiCA register in short

• Dated 12 October 2026, supervisor BaFin. The label in the file is ‘Article 60 - Notification’. That is a bank’s notification, a different route from the Article 63 authorisation.
• Two services: custody and administration of crypto-assets on behalf of clients (service a) and transfer of crypto-assets on behalf of clients (service j). Trading, swapping and executing orders are not listed.
• 30 country codes in the entry: Germany plus 29 other countries. These are the 26 other EU member states (including the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, Portugal and Poland) plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
• Last change to the entry: 20 October 2026. The country list only appears in the 30 October file; see ‘What is not certain yet’.
• No product announcement. An entry in the register does not mean a service is already open to clients.
• Who the first clients will be is not in the register. According to Crypto Valley Journal on 19 October, Gerald Podobnik, co-head of the Corporate Bank, said the bank is ‘only weeks away’ from launching for business clients and that retail clients are not part of the first group.

What the entry in the ESMA file says

We downloaded the file from ESMA ourselves (CASPS.csv, modification date 30 October 2026, 11:27 GMT). This is what it says for Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft:

At the time of writing the file has 392 entries with 389 distinct LEI codes. After removing two terminated entries and merging three duplicates, we are left with 387 entries; that is the number our earlier pieces used.

What may a bank do under Article 60?

A bank does not need to apply for a separate authorisation as a crypto-asset service provider, but it must notify its plans. The text of Article 60 of MiCA says that a credit institution may provide crypto-asset services if it notifies the prescribed information to the supervisor of its home country ‘at least 40 working days’ before it provides the services for the first time.

• 40 working days is eight weeks at five working days a week. That is a worked example; public holidays are not counted.
• The supervisor has 20 working days to assess whether the notification is complete (Article 60, paragraph 8). As long as the notification is incomplete, the bank may not start.
• What information? Among other things a programme of operations, anti-money-laundering measures, ICT security, the segregation of client assets and, where relevant, a custody policy.
• Which services? In its question and answer 2088, ESMA writes that a credit institution can provide all crypto-asset services on the basis of a notification. Deutsche Bank notified two.
• What falls away? Article 60, paragraph 10 says that these banks are not subject to Articles 62, 63, 64, 67, 83 and 84. These cover, among other things, the application for an authorisation, own funds and the assessment of shareholders. Conduct towards clients (Article 66) still applies.

How do 29 countries end up in the entry?

A bank that wants to provide crypto-asset services in more than one country must notify its own supervisor under Article 65 of MiCA. The supervisor passes the notification on to the supervisors of the other countries, to ESMA and to the EBA within 10 working days. Under Article 65, paragraph 4, the bank may begin in such a country as soon as it has been told the notification has been passed on, and no later than the fifteenth calendar day after it submitted the information.

So the country list in the register shows the countries to which the notification has been passed on. It does not show that the bank has offices, clients or an offering there.

What else changed in the file?

We compared the 30 October file with the one from 22 October. Besides Deutsche Bank, this changed:

Worth noting: all five of those banks have a date after 30 October, the date on which ESMA updated the file. So the register also shows notification dates that are still to come; do not read a date there as ‘already active’.

What does this mean for you as a European investor?

As a retail client: nothing changes in what you can buy or store with your own platform. What is known points to business clients as the first group, and the register shows no offering for retail clients. If you are looking for a place to hold crypto yourself, see choosing a crypto wallet.

In the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, Portugal and Poland: these countries are on the list, like all the other EU countries. That means Deutsche Bank has had the notification passed on there, not that a resident can open a crypto account there now. For who the supervisor is in those countries, and who does hold an authorisation, see the list at MiCA authorisations.

If you want to check for yourself: search for the name or the LEI code in the ESMA file. An entry with ‘Article 60’ is a notification by a bank or investment firm, ‘Article 63’ is an authorisation as a crypto-asset service provider. The difference is explained in our piece MiCA register: authorised or just notified?.

What is not certain yet

• When the bank starts. According to Crypto Valley Journal, Deutsche Bank itself gives no date; ‘only weeks away’ is all that is known. We found no press release from the bank.
• Which assets. According to the same source, it covers bitcoin, ether and the stablecoins USDC, EURC and EURAU; ESMA’s file names no assets.
• Why the country list only appears now. The entry shows 20 October as its last change, but in our 22 October file only Germany was listed. ESMA publishes the file every week and itself says that recently transmitted information may not be visible straight away. We do not know where the difference comes from.
• The official legal text. The Official Journal (EUR-Lex) could not be opened from our environment at the time of writing. We read Article 60 in ESMA’s Single Rulebook and at Springlex; Article 65 comes from a Springlex summary. Check the exact wording if a decision depends on it.
• Bitpanda. It is reported that Bitpanda’s technology unit is involved; according to Crypto Valley Journal, Bitpanda has not confirmed this. We are not taking it on board.

This article is not investment advice. Crypto can lose a lot of value and you could lose your entire investment.

Frequently asked questions

Does Deutsche Bank have a MiCA authorisation?

In the register the bank is listed with a notification under Article 60, the route intended for banks. On that basis banks may provide crypto-asset services without a separate authorisation as a crypto-asset service provider, as long as BaFin has found the notification complete.

Can I buy or store crypto at Deutsche Bank?

The register says nothing about that. According to Crypto Valley Journal on 19 October, the bank is working on a launch for business clients, not for retail clients.

What does it mean that the Netherlands is on the list?

That the notification has also been passed on for the Netherlands. It does not mean the bank is recruiting clients there or has an office there.

What is the difference between Article 60 and Article 63?

Article 60 is the notification by an existing bank or investment firm. Article 63 is the authorisation that a crypto-asset service provider applies for from the supervisor.

Where can I see for myself what is in the register?

In the CASP file on ESMA’s MiCA page; the page states ‘Last update: 30 October 2026’. Search by name or LEI code.

Sources

Read on 1 November 2026.

• ESMA: CASP file of the interim MiCA register (CASPS.csv), modification date 30 October 2026
• ESMA: MiCA page with the interim register, ‘Last update: 30 October 2026’
• ESMA Single Rulebook: Article 60 MiCA
• ESMA question and answer 2088 on Article 60
• Springlex: Article 60 MiCA (paragraphs 8 and 10)
• Springlex: Article 65 MiCA
• Crypto Valley Journal: Deutsche Bank set to launch crypto custody within weeks, 19 October 2026