The use of cryptocurrency in Germany is increasing rapidly with Bitcoin and Ethereum being widely used in e-commerce to purchase goods.
Cryptocurrencies in Germany are regularly transferred and traded and companies have invested their capital in the new digital currency.
It is estimated that more than 2.1 million people – 2.62% of Germany’s total population – currently own cryptocurrency with Bitcoin as the leader.
The majority of German cryptocurrency owners are in the 18-34 age group (33%). Five per cent of them are 55 and above, meaning cryptocurrencies are largely owned by young, tech-savvy and affluent German residents.
Germany is, however, one of the few states in Europe that started to regulate the Bitcoin system.
The virtual currency regulation already exists and follows the German Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz).
According to this rule, any person who conducts banking business or financial services for commercial purposes in Germany needs written authorisation by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Agency (GFFSA).
The GFFSA has classified digital currencies, in particular Bitcoin, as units of account in the sense of the German Banking Act.
It means that commercial Bitcoin platform operators – at least those established in Germany and/or those serving German customers – need a licence from the GFFSA under German law.
German tax authorities classify Bitcoin as an ‘economic asset’ (Wirtschaftsgut) that is then subject to income tax according to the German Income Tax Act (Einkommenssteuergesetz).
Germany, therefore, seems to be fertile soil for crypto companies. Some of the world’s most successful crypto companies found their place in German territory.
1inch Exchange
A liquidity aggregator and a decentralised exchange with smart routing that connects a large number of decentralised and centralised platforms in order to minimise slippage and find the best price for the users.
The synergetic effect of its smart contract is substantially beneficial to the Ethereum community.
Bitwala
Bitwala offers a banking experience that combines fully protected bank accounts with access to cryptocurrencies, digital assets, and blockchain-based finance.
With the firm’s blockchain technology platform, customers can invest in cryptocurrency directly from a bank account and earn up to a 4% annual return on Bitcoin.
FinLab
FinLab is a Germany-based investment company engaged in the building of companies in financial services technologies.
Minespider
Minespider is an open blockchain protocol for supply chain due diligence. It offers all stakeholders in the chain the opportunity to introduce and track the origins of the materials extracted, no matter their transformation along the supply chain.
The NAGA Group
The NAGA Group provides personal finance and investment products under the brand name NAGA and combines and unifies trading, investing, transacting and community across both fiat and crypto.
Tangany
Tangany provides a custody ‘Wallet as a Service’ for businesses to easily integrate blockchain technology into legacy and new systems via an API.
The connectors (Meta Blockchain API) enable clients to connect to the different public (like Ethereum or Bitcoin) and private blockchains (like Hyperledger or Privat Ethereum instances).
Coindex
With Coindex customers can invest in digital assets like Bitcoin easily and securely. Coindex is the first platform for intelligent crypto portfolios where users can configure index based and individual portfolios in a breeze.
CryptoTax
CryptoTax is helping individuals and companies in meeting their legal obligations arising from dealing with blockchain-based assets.
Blocksize Capital
Blocksize Capital makes the DLT – and Blockchain-based asset market accessible for financial institutions.
USDX Wallet
Lighthouse is a company made up of entrepreneurs and crypto enthusiasts united in their aim of boosting innovation in the digital economy.
Bitbond
Bitbond improves the issuance, settlement and custody of bonds and other assets with the help of blockchain technology and tokenization.
In 2019 Bitbond received regulatory approval from BaFin to run Europe’s first Security Token Offering (STO).
IOTA Foundation
The IOTA Foundation is the Next-Generation Blockchain and was initiated with a very clear and focused vision of enabling the paradigm shift of the Internet of Things, Industry 4.0 and a trustless ‘On Demand Economy’ through establishing a de facto standardised ‘Ledger of Everything’.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author should not be considered as financial advice. We do not give advice on financial products.