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Germany’s largest banking group, Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe, is preparing to offer crypto trading services to its retail clients by summer 2026, Bloomberg News reported on June 30.

The move represents a significant policy shift for Sparkassen, which had previously avoided crypto offerings due to concerns about volatility and risk.

According to the report, the bank’s board of directors voted in 2023 to hold back from digital asset services, calling cryptocurrencies “highly speculative.” Now, Sparkassen will allow private clients to trade leading tokens, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, directly from their accounts.

Sparkassen’s wholly owned subsidiary, Dekabank, will develop and manage the platform.

Dekabank secured a crypto custody license under Germany’s Banking Act from the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), enabling it to provide trading and custody services for institutional clients. The upcoming retail expansion marks its next strategic milestone.

The decision follows the implementation of the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulatory regime, which established a single, harmonized legal framework for crypto businesses across EU member states.

MiCA’s clarity has emboldened several European banks to accelerate crypto initiatives once deemed too risky under fragmented national rules. However, German regulators continue to monitor crypto-related risks closely.

Bloomberg noted that the country’s anti-money laundering agency reported a record 8,711 suspicious activity reports tied to crypto transactions in 2024, even as overall financial crime alerts declined compared to prior years.

Officials have warned that digital assets remain an attractive channel for illicit flows despite improved compliance measures.

Sparkassen’s entry into retail crypto services reflects a broader European banking trend. Börse Stuttgart’s “Bison” app, along with similar initiatives from cooperative banks and Landesbanken, as well as Deutsche Börse, has demonstrated strong demand from retail investors for regulated crypto products in Germany.

Sparkassen’s nearly 50 million retail customers could significantly accelerate mainstream adoption of digital assets in Europe’s largest economy.

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What just happened? The Hanover Administrative Court has issued a ruling that sharpens digital privacy protections in Germany. The decision requires websites to offer users a clear, easy, and genuine choice on cookie consent. Manipulative consent banners that push users toward accepting cookies are not just unfair – they violate German and European data protection laws.

Lower Saxony Data Protection Officer Denis Lehmkemper has won a legal battle in his push for fairer digital privacy practices in Germany. The Hanover Administrative Court ruled that websites must display a clearly visible “reject all” button on cookie banners if they offer an “accept all” option.

The recently unsealed March 19 decision aims to curb manipulative designs that pressure users into consenting to cookies and reinforces the principle that users deserve a clear, genuine choice.

The case that led to this landmark decision centered on NOZ (Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung), a major media company in Lower Saxony. Lehmkemper’s office ordered NOZ to redesign its cookie banner, arguing it failed to obtain valid, informed, and voluntary user consent before placing cookies and processing personal data.

NOZ challenged the order, insisting its consent process was effective, did not involve personal data processing, and that cookie compliance was outside the data protection authority’s jurisdiction.

After reviewing the case, the court sided with the data protection authority. Judges ruled that NOZ’s cookie banner made rejecting cookies significantly harder than accepting them. Users faced repeated consent prompts, and the banner’s language – such as the headline “optimal user experience” and the “accept and close” button – misled users. It omitted any mention of the word “consent,” and buried information about third-party partners and cross-border data transfers behind scrolling.

The court concluded that NOZ failed to obtain the informed, voluntary, and unambiguous consent required under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). It ruled that consent secured through manipulative design is invalid, violating both the Telecommunications Digital Services Data Protection Act and the GDPR.

The judgment reinforces that websites must not nudge users into agreeing to cookies or make refusal unnecessarily difficult. Instead, the option to reject all must be as prominent and accessible as “accept all.”

Lehmkemper welcomed the court’s ruling, hoping it would set a precedent for other website operators. He acknowledged that many find cookie banners frustrating but emphasized their importance in safeguarding online privacy. The decision should prompt more providers to adopt consent solutions that comply with data protection standards.

Recent audits by data protection authorities, such as the Bavarian State Office for Data Protection Supervision, found many websites still use cookie banners that fall short of legal standards, often making it easier to accept cookies than to reject them. The Hanover court’s ruling should push website operators to improve consent mechanisms and uphold online privacy rights.

Germany is storing over $109 billion worth of gold in the New York Federal Reserve’s vaults, but some officials in the country are beginning to call for less trust and more verification.

Michael Jäger of the European Taxpayers’ Association – a federation of 29 national taxpayers associations throughout Europe –  is urging Germany to immediately obtain its gold from the USA amid tention between the White House and the US, Bild reports.

Says Jäger,

“The Bundesbank and the German government must demonstrate foresight in this phase of global power shifts and immediately retrieve German gold from the USA. Especially at a time when Berlin and Brussels are discussing immense new debt, we need immediate access to all gold reserves in an emergency.”

Jäger says that at a minimum, Germany should at least be able to “physically inspect” the gold bars.

European Member of Parliament Markus Ferber echoes Jäger’s sentiments, telling Bild:

“I demand regular checks of Germany’s gold reserves. Official representatives of the Bundesbank must personally count the bars and document their results.”

Meanwhile, lawmaker Marco Wanderwitz says Germany’s CDU (Christian Democratic Union) is advocating that Germany needs to “either check regularly or retrieve the gold.”

The Germans’ calls for inspecting the gold reserves comes as Elon Musk, tech billionaire and close aid of President Trump, is suggesting that an audit of Fort Knox in Kentucky be “livestreamed.”

The last time Fort Knox was audited was in September of 1974.

In a statement to Bild, a spokseperson for Germany’s Bundesbank quoted and reiterated a Feburary statement from the bank’s President, Joachim Nagel.

“We have (…) absolutely no doubt that with the Fed in New York we have a trustworthy, reliable partner in the storage of our gold reserves.”

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Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has rejected Ethena Labs’ application to issue asset-referenced tokens under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCAR).

The regulator also raised concerns that the sUSDe may constitute an unlicensed security offering.

According to BaFin’s official notice, the application submitted by Ethena GmbH, a Frankfurt-based entity under Ethena Labs’ corporate structure, exhibited “significant deficiencies” in organizational practices and failed to meet MiCAR requirements concerning asset reserves and capital adequacy. 

BaFin immediately imposed enforceable supervisory measures, including prohibiting further public offerings of the USDe token within Germany, and ordered custodians to freeze the token’s reserve assets.

Notably, some stablecoin issuers have been facing difficulties under the MiCA regulation. Major European exchanges delisted Tether USD (USDT) because they were concerned that the token might be non-compliant. However, authorities have not yet deemed USDT non-compliant.

Ordered to stop USDe issuance

However, under a MiCAR transitional provision, Ethena GmbH continued issuing the token in Germany after applying for authorization on July 29, 2024.

Approximately 5.4 billion USDe tokens are currently circulating, most of which were issued before MiCAR’s effective enforcement and outside of Germany.

BaFin clarified that its actions do not affect USDe’s secondary market trading but temporarily restrict redemptions directly through Ethena GmbH. Since January 2025, Ethena BVI Limited, an affiliated entity based in the British Virgin Islands, has also facilitated the token’s issuance.

Moreover, the regulator appointed a special representative to monitor compliance and noted the potential for additional actions, including a ban on public offerings of associated securities.

Securities offering

Beyond operational shortcomings, BaFin expressed a “sufficiently substantiated suspicion” that the sUSDe token qualifies as a security under German law and has been offered publicly without an approved securities prospectus. 

The sUSDe is a yield-bearing stablecoin acquired by staking USDe. BaFin’s concern stems from the financial structure and alleged profit promise embedded in the sUSDe token, which may trigger regulatory classification as a security.

BaFin’s position introduces a regulatory challenge to hybrid instruments like sUSDe, which combine stablecoin mechanics with yield-generation features. The regulator is actively evaluating whether the public distribution of such instruments requires compliance with securities law, including disclosure and prospectus obligations. 

The outcome of this classification could set a precedent for similar crypto assets in the European Union.

Ethena Labs’ response

In response, Ethena Labs published a statement confirming that it had been informed of BaFin’s decision to reject Ethena GmbH’s MiCAR application.

The company acknowledged the decision in a public statement and said it is “evaluating alternative frameworks” for regulatory compliance.

Ethena added:

“Since its inception, Ethena has been exploring various options and jurisdictions when it comes to regulatory frameworks globally. A MiCAR authorization via Ethena GmbH was one of various options we have been pursuing.”

The firm emphasized that the decision does not impact USDe minting and redemption activities facilitated by Ethena BVI Limited, which services the “vast majority” of users.

The company also denied speculation of an asset freeze, asserting that all reserves remain available. It added that it plans to revise its terms of service in the coming week.

BaFin’s rejection reinforces the increasing scrutiny of stablecoins and synthetic yield instruments operating within or targeting European markets following the implementation of MiCA.

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The president of Germany’s monetary authority is advocating for a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

In a question-and-answer session with economists at the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) think tank, the president of the Deutsche Bundesbank, Joachim Nagel, says he supports a CBDC.

The OMFIF cites Nagel saying that “CBDCs will play a role in the future resilience” of Europe and will assist in protecting the sovereignty of the Eurozone. Nagel says CBDCs are a public good that central banks should offer.

According to the think tank, the Deutsche Bundesbank president views the rise of US companies in the global payments sector as a potential threat in the future since they could be “used in a digital environment as a form of weapon,” a prospect which makes it necessary for Europe to find a backstop measure.

The think tank further cites the Deutsche Bundesbank president saying that it’s “too early to tell” how CBDCs, as well as digitalization, could impact the neutral rate of interest – the interest rate that the European Central Bank aspires to ensure inflation remains stable and the economy stays at full employment.

The OMFIF also says Nagel is opposed to Bitcoin (BTC) becoming a form of a reserve currency. The central bank president sees Bitcoin as a “digital tulip” that is the “opposite of transparent.”

“This is not something central banks should look at. This is not a liquid form of something you want on the balance sheet. We should be very cautious here.”

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