Deutsche Bank has applied for a digital asset license in an attempt to expand its revenue streams.

According to a report by Bloomberg, the German bank applied for the license because it wants to provide a custody service for digital assets such as crypto currencies.

David Lynne, who manages Deutsche Bank’s commercial banking unit, told the news website that the application was part of a wider plan to increase revenue. Deutsche Bank’s investment business DWS Group made an attempt to increase revenue from products linked with digital assets, when the firm tried to buy a minority stake in Deutsche Digital Assets in February 2023.

In 2020, Deutsche Bank that it was planning to provide digital asset custody, but did not share when the service would begin.

Commenting on the news, a spokesperson for Deutsche Bank told FStech: “Deutsche Bank has applied for regulatory permission in Germany to operate a custody service for digital assets such as crypto currencies. Deutsche Bank is in an ongoing dialogue with our clients, regulators and the fintech community on how best to bring these new products to market. Clearly it’s important that our possible offering will be fully aligned to regulatory requirements.”

Deutsche Bank was one of five banks recently accused of breaking competition law by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

The watchdog said major banks, including HSBC and Royal Bank of Canada, broke the rules by sharing competitively sensitive information by participating in one or more one-to-one conversations in chatrooms.

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