Ripple Scores Landmark Partnership: DZ BANK Launches XRP Custody in Germany

In a major coup for Ripple, Germany’s second-largest bank DZ BANK has gone live with XRP custody services—marking another institutional embrace of digital assets.

The move signals growing confidence in XRP’s utility for cross-border settlements, despite the SEC’s lingering legal cloud over Ripple. Traders cheered the news, sending XRP up 8% on the announcement.

DZ BANK’s custody solution—built on Metaco’s Harmonize platform—now allows 800 cooperative banks to securely hold XRP. "This isn’t your crypto nephew’s cold wallet," quipped one fintech analyst, "It’s the kind of infrastructure that makes Swiss private bankers reconsider their gold vaults."

The partnership delivers Ripple its first major European custody win since securing Clearstream last year. With Germany’s stringent BaFin oversight, the deal could pressure other risk-averse EU banks to follow suit—or risk being stuck processing €50 wire transfers while competitors settle in seconds.

Ripple just made a massive move in Europe, quietly. According to crypto analyst pumpius on X, Germany’s second-largest bank, DZ BANK, has officially gone live with a Ripple-powered digital asset custody platform. With over €350 billion in assets under custody, this partnership marks a huge milestone for Ripple, especially as it slips into the core infrastructure of traditional finance without making a huge hype.

A Building Block for the Digital Euro?

DZ BANK’s integration comes under Germany’s forward-looking Electronic Securities Act (eWpG), which allows institutions to issue digital securities without paper certificates. This legal structure has opened the door for Ripple to become a backbone for tokenized assets and, potentially, CBDC development. Analysts even called it “CBDC infrastructure, disguised as custody”, a major signal of what’s brewing behind the scenes.

Tokenized Bonds, Crypto Securities & XRP

Ripple is quietly making its way into traditional banking, and now it’s starting to show. Germany’s second-biggest bank, DZ BANK, is officially using Ripple’s technology to manage digital assets like tokenized bonds and crypto securities. The MOVE is fully approved under German law.

Instead of making a big public splash, Ripple is focusing on building quietly behind the scenes. The goal is to become part of the financial system from the inside. It’s no longer just about cross-border payments. Ripple is now creating tools that help banks manage digital assets from start to finish, including issuing, storing, and settling them.

Interestingly, DZ BANK has become the first major European bank to put Ripple’s institutional-grade custody system into real-world use. This move could set the stage for other top-tier banks to follow. At the center of it all is XRP, serving as the bridge that ties the entire digital asset process together, from issuance to settlement.

Ripple’s “Silent Infiltration” Strategy

Without HYPE or headlines, Ripple’s tech is steadily becoming foundational in regulated finance. As the analyst noted, this is a “silent infiltration,” and DZ BANK could be just the beginning. With real clients and real assets now live, Ripple’s presence in Europe’s financial backbone is no longer speculative, it’s here.