Deutsche Bank Partners with Taurus to Launch Crypto Custody Services

Deutsche Bank, one of Germany’s leading financial institutions, has announced its entry into the world of cryptocurrency custody through a strategic partnership with Taurus, a cryptocurrency infrastructure platform. The collaboration comes after Deutsche Bank’s participation in Taurus’ $65 million Series B fundraising round earlier this year.

About Taurus

Taurus, founded in Switzerland in 2018, specializes in offering enterprise-level infrastructure for the issuance, management, custody, and trading of various digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, and nonfungible tokens (NFTs). The Series B round that Deutsche Bank invested in was led by Credit Suisse and included other financial giants like Arab Bank Switzerland.

The Deal

Taurus co-founder Lamine Brahimi confirmed that the deal was the result of a comprehensive due diligence process that began in late 2021 and concluded in 2022. According to Brahimi, the partnership will be global in scope and align with local regulatory standards for providing custody and tokenization technologies.

Deutsche Bank had previously shown its intentions of diving into the cryptocurrency market. Earlier this year, it applied for a digital asset custody license from Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, with plans to extend its services to include cryptocurrency trading and custody.

Institutional Growth and Further Partnerships

Paul Maley, Deutsche Bank’s Global Securities Services Head, emphasized that the cryptocurrency market is poised to balloon into a trillion-dollar asset class and become a priority for investors and institutions. This statement correlates with Deutsche Bank’s ongoing efforts in the crypto space, including its asset management arm, DWS Group, which had been in talks to invest in other cryptocurrency ventures like Deutsche Digital Assets and market maker platform Tradias.

Furthermore, Deutsche Bank Singapore and Memento Blockchain have recently completed a proof-of-concept named Project DAMA (Digital Assets Management Access), focusing on the management of digital funds in tokenized securities.

What’s Next?

Taurus aims to serve “tier 1” banks across Europe and currently provides its platform services to nearly 30 banks. Brahimi told Cointelegraph that most of these deals go “beyond cryptocurrencies” to include the tokenization of other financial products like equity and debt.

Deutsche Bank’s partnership with Taurus signals a strong commitment from traditional finance institutions towards the integration and adoption of cryptocurrencies and digital assets. The collaboration, which is global in its scope, could set a precedent for how large banking institutions approach the growing cryptocurrency market and digital asset management. With an eye on regulatory compliance and technological robustness, Deutsche Bank is positioning itself as a key player in the future of digital assets and cryptocurrencies.