German Savings Banks Association (DSVG), the largest banking network in the country, plans to allow crypto trading on its mobile app by the summer of 2026, Bloomberg reported.
Largest German Bank Group to Offer Crypto Trading for 50 Million Customers

Also known as Sparkassen-Finanzengruppe, the group serves more than 50 million customers across Germany, the biggest economy in Europe. It marks a notable shift in policy for the bank, which had previously maintained a healthy distance from crypto assets. In 2023, the group’s leadership made a direct dismissal of the idea of offering cryptocurrency trading to customers, noting volatility and risk issues.
The new service will be offered in the Sparkassen app, via DekaBank, the central asset manager of the group.
According to Bloomberg, the change comes about for several reasons, including an increase in demand for access, as well as the implementation of Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCAR), the EU’s newly implemented crypto regulatory structure.
Urging caution
Despite the course-reversal on offering crypto trading to customers, Sparkassen remains cautious and urges users to have a healthy scepticism of the asset class.
“Our position remains clear: cryptocurrencies are highly speculative investments."
The service will not be advertised and there will be no specific investing advice provided. Furthermore, the bank will inform users of the risks of crypto trading, “including the potential for total loss.”
More crypto for Germans
Sparkassen is not the first major German financial provider to get into the crypto market recently.
In 2024, the Landesbank Baden-Württemberg, in partnership with Bitpanda, implemented cryptocurrency services for corporate clients. Later last year, DZ Bank, the second-largest bank in the country, ran a crypto trading pilot project alongside Boerse Stuttgart Digital. The pilot is set to expand this year.
Deutsche Bank
This week, it was reported that Deutsche Bank will offer digital assets custody services as of 2026, also supported by technology from Bitpanda.
It’s clear that this year, institutional investors and TradFi actors that had initially rejected Bitcoin and other crypto assets and are now reconsidering their positions and looking to get in on the action.