The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority of Germany, also known as BaFin, has issued an order related to the business organization of Coinbase’s local arm in accordance with the country’s banking laws. In a Nov. 8 notice, BaFin said it had issued the order to Coinbase Germany GmbH for violations of “proper business organization” under the German Banking Act. According to a copy of the legislation made available by the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Coinbase’s Germany arm should have “suitable arrangements for managing, monitoring and controlling risks and appropriate arrangements by means of which the institution’s financial situation can …

Birgit Rodolphe, executive director at Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), has called for innovative and uniform regulation of the decentralized finance (DeFi) space throughout the European Union. BaFin is Germany’s financial regulatory body responsible for regulating banks, insurance firms and financial institutions including cryptocurrency companies. BaFin is the issuer of “crypto custody licenses,” a permit required for firms wanting to offer cryptocurrency services within Germany. In an article on BaFin’s website, Rodolphe warned of the risks to consumers of the unregulated DeFi space and called for standardized regulatory considerations across EU member countries: “One thing is clear: the clock …

The richest country in Europe is coming round to crypto. That’s according to a report by KuCoin which shared some flattering statistics towards the future of crypto in Deutschland. Notably, 44% of Germans are “motivated to invest in cryptocurrencies to be a part of ‘the future of finance’”; while over a third, “37% of German crypto investors have been trading cryptocurrencies for over a year.” Cointelegraph had previously picked up on crypto’s impressive and productive year in Germany, but it’s crucial to check the sentiment toward crypto on the ground. Johnny Lyu, CEO of KuCoin–the company publishing the report–explained to …

German neobank N26, one of the biggest European fintechs with over $9 billion in valuation, is finally ready to tackle crypto and equities trading after striving for a global expansion. Despite being an early player in the financial technology boom across Europe, the Berlin-based online bank N26’s global ambitions induced a setback in its diversification of services, N26 co-founder and co-CEO Max Tayenthal said in an FT interview. After exiting two critical fintech markets, the United States and the United Kingdom, N26 plans to “sharpen its focus on its European business” by introducing new products and services to its 7 …

German financial regulators have approved a security token offering (STO) based on a Bitcoin (BTC) sidechain. Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has greenlighted the EXOeu token by game publisher Exordium, making local retail investors eligible to participate in the sale on Stokr, a major European digital marketplace. German investors can invest in EXOeu via Stokr with a minimum investment amount of $100. EXOeu is the second STO ever approved for the German market on Stokr after BaFin approved an STO by parking network ParkinGO last year. Launched in January 2021, the EXOeu security token is raising funds for the …

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s chairperson Gary Gensler announced this month that the crypto industry should not escape the purview of the regulator. He highlighted that decentralized finance (DeFi) trading and lending protocols need particular attention when it comes to investor protections. Regulation can extend into a menu of options that covers custody, reporting, counterparty verification and asset classification and issuance. Reports are surfacing that people are waiting with bated breath on how the SEC will regulate the DeFi industry, but Germany's Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, also known as BaFin, has found a way to apply existing securities …

Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, or BaFin, has warned investors about the risks involved in cryptocurrency investments. In a consumer protection alert issued on its website on Friday, the regulator offered a cautionary tale about crypto involvement on the part of retail investors. As part of its statement, BaFin echoed similar admonitions espoused by several European regulators including the European Securities and Markets Authority and the European Banking Authority. According to BaFin, retail investors need to be aware of the risks of incurring 100% losses from their crypto investments. While European Union lawmakers are still working toward creating an EU-wide …

Deutsche Borse’s electronic trading platform, Xetra, is preparing to launch its first Ether (ETH)-based exchange-traded products, or ETPs. According to data from Xetra, the platform is set to debut trading of two Ether ETPs — ETC Group’s Ether exchange-traded commodity, or ETC, product (ZETH) and 21Shares’ Ethereum ETP (AETH) — on Tuesday. A spokesperson for Deutsche Borse told Cointelegraph that the two products will be the first Ether ETPs to ever be listed on Xetra. Alongside AETH, Xetra will be also listing 21Shares’ Bitcoin Cash (BCH) ETP, the firm’s global head of ETP, Laurent Kssis, told Cointelegraph. “As of tomorrow …

The German word for securities is wertpapieren, or "papers of worth," which may soon be as outdated as nocturnal traders saying they're burning the midnight oil. Per a Reuters report from Wednesday, Merkel's cabinet had passed a new law that will end the requirement to have a paper certificate for sale of a security, overtly looking to advance blockchain trading within the country. German Finance Minister Olaf Scholtz reportedly said, “The paper certificate may be dear to some for nostalgic reasons, but the future belongs to its electronic version.” The Finance Ministry called the shift to all-electronic securities a component …

In an effort to increase the country's legal overwatch, Germany now says Bitcoin (BTC) ATMs require regulatory approval before they are allowed to operate. ATMs that offer assets such as Litecoin and Bitcoin now requires a license from Germany's financial regulator, BaFin, a Sept. 8 statement from the entity said. "Proprietary trading is a financial service and financial commission business is a banking business, for which prior approval from BaFin is required." This does not appear so much as a new ruling as it does a clarification of current legal requirements. "Those who set up such crypto machines that do …

London-based ETC Group will list the first crypto exchange-traded product on Germany’s Xetra digital stock exchange this month. Traders in the United Kingdom, Italy and Austria will also be able to deal in shares of the new product. According to ETF Stream, ETC Group announced on June 9 that Bitcoin Exchange Traded Crypto, or BTCE, an exchange-traded product, will launch on Deutsche Börse Xetra after it receives approval from German financial regulators. BTCE tracks the price of Bitcoin (BTC) and is physically backed by the cryptocurrency. The Bitcoin will be held in cold storage by digital asset custodian BitGo. ETC …

German security token offering (STO) platform Black Manta Capital Partners partnered with local digital asset custody firm Finoa to develop institutional security token custody. According to an announcement shared with Cointelegraph on May 4, the cooperation aims to develop a regulated security token custody solution explicitly aimed at institutional investors, high net worth individuals and corporations. Black Manta and Finoa will first collaborate on securing the tokens of the Berlin STO that has tokenized $12 million worth of real estate announced last month. Per the announcement, Finoa is a Berlin-based digital asset custodian that holds a crypto custody license issued …