Eurex, a derivatives exchange owned by German stock market operator Deutsche Boerse, has debuted cryptocurrency derivatives trading with ETC Group’s Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded note (ETN) futures product. Eurex officially announced Monday the launch of the Bitcoin ETN Futures contract developed by London-based crypto derivatives issuer ETC Group. “As the first step in our portfolio of crypto derivatives, the offering is the first regulated market in Bitcoin-related derivatives in Europe,” Eurex said. Trusted path to #crypto: today, we launched #Bitcoin ETN #Futures. As the first step in our portfolio of #CryptoDerivatives, the offering is the first regulated market in Bitcoin-related #derivatives …

Union Investment, a $500 billion asset manager, is planning to add Bitcoin (BTC) to several investment funds as part of a targeted pilot program for its institutional clients, offering compelling evidence that crypto is becoming more mainstream in Europe's largest economy. The Frankfurt-based institution told Bloomberg on Monday that it is considering adding BTC to a small number of investment funds that will only be available to private investors. For each fund, Bitcoin exposure will be limited to no more than 2% of total assets. Portfolio manager Daniel Bathe said the new investment strategy is likely to commence in the …

Following the successful expansion of its cryptocurrency service within its homeland of Switzerland, fintech firm Leonteq has now launched a collaborative effort with ICF Bank — one of Germany’s leading securities trading banks — to bring crypto to institutional investors throughout Germany and Austria. Well regarded for their accolades in the Swiss markets, including being the “world’s first short tracker certificate on Bitcoin in 2017, as well as the world’s first reverse convertible on Bitcoin in 2019,” the firm is now set to make further strides in the emerging space. Following the evolution of a multi-year relationship, Leonteq and ICF …

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 …

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) is making another step towards the development of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) by partnering with a German currency technology provider. The BoG officially announced Wednesday that it signed an agreement with German banknote and securities printing company Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) to pilot a retail CBDC in Ghana, West Africa. As part of the agreement, G+D will provide its proprietary CBDC solution known as Filia to pilot the issuance of a digital form of Ghana’s national currency, the cedi. The digital currency will be tested in a trial with local banks, merchants, payment service providers …

Beginning on Aug. 2, 2021, German institutional funds will be able to hold up to 20% of their assets in cryptocurrencies, possibly setting the stage for wider mainstream acceptance of Bitcoin (BTC) and other crypto assets by the nation’s pension funds. As Bloomberg reported, the new law alters fixed investment rules governing Spezialfonds, also known as special funds, which are only accessible to institutional investors such as pension funds and insurers. Spezialfonds currently manage about $2.1 trillion, or 1.8 trillion euros, worth of assets. Related: Hedge funds see the crypto market decline as an investment opportunity Tim Kreutzmann, who works …

Troubled global cryptocurrency exchange Binance continues moving fast in curbing services to respond to the ongoing regulatory scrutiny worldwide, partly shutting down derivatives trading. Binance officially announced Friday that it would suspend its derivatives trading across the European region, starting with Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. The company clarified that users in mentioned countries cannot open new futures accounts on Binance effective immediately. We're continually evaluating our products and working with our partners to meet our users’ needs. Today we’re announcing that we plan to wind down our derivatives products offerings across the European region, commencing with the Netherlands, Germany, …

Investment product issuer 21Shares has joined forces with comdirect, a leading online brokerage in Germany, to bring its cryptocurrency exchange-traded products, or ETPs, to savings accounts. The partnership means that comdirect’s nearly 3 million customers will be able to integrate physically-backed crypto ETPs into their Spar savings accounts. 21Shares claims this is the first such instance where investors can gain crypto exposure in their savings accounts. Marco Infuso, a managing director at 21Shares, said the new product offering will enable comdirect clients to include crypto in their retirement planning and will also help onboard investors who have been apprehensive about …

The world’s largest cryptocurrency trading platform, Binance, has faced regulatory upheaval over the past week as jurisdictions clamped down on the use of unauthorized exchanges and warned citizens against accessing them. For Binance, adopting the moniker of “global exchange” has done very little to appease regulators that require specific licenses to offer financial services to their citizens. Below is a brief recap of recent regulatory actions surrounding Binance. Japan On June 25, Japan’s Financial Services Agency, or FSA, accused Binance of operating in the country without proper registration – potentially setting the stage for a protracted legal battle with regulators. …

Deutsche Boerse has acquired a majority stake in Crypto Finance AG — a Swiss digital asset firm. According to a release issued on Tuesday, the German stock exchange operator has bought a two-thirds stake in the digital asset company. Though the financial details of the deal have yet to be made public, Deutsche Boerse revealed that the purchase sum was in the “moderate three-digit CHF million range.” The stock purchase agreement will be finalized in Q4 2021 once all parties receive the required green light from regulators. As part of the announcement, Deutsche Boerse revealed that the acquisition was part …

The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority has issued a crypto custody business license for Coinbase’s Germany arm. In a Monday announcement, Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, also known as BaFin, said it had issued Coinbase the first such license for a crypto exchange related to custodying digital assets in the country. The regulator said due to the lack of precedent, it would be forming an interdisciplinary, cross-divisional and cross-departmental team to handle any issues related to crypto custody. Lawmakers in Germany passed legislation at the end of 2019 which requires that firms wishing to operate as crypto custody businesses receive BaFin …

The German Football Association (DFB) has officially announced the debut of national soccer team nonfungible tokens (NFTs) in partnership with a major blockchain-based fantasy soccer game provider Sorare. As part of an official license agreement, the DFB will create digital collectible cards on the Ethereum blockchain of 18 players on the German national team through Sorare’s platform. According to an announcement from Sorare, the cards will be available for use in Sorare’s Global Fantasy Football game for the Euro 2020 soccer championship. By issuing player NFT cards on Sorare’s platform, the DFB aims to find new revenue streams as well …