(Bloomberg) — Bitcoin Group SE is considering a bid for Bankhaus von der Heydt, the 268-year-old German bank that’s stumbled with its own moves into cryptocurrencies and digital assets.
The crypto and blockchain investor is in negotiations with several potential targets, including Bankhaus von der Heydt, the company said in a statement late Thursday that confirmed a Bloomberg News report.
Founded in 1754, Munich-based Bankhaus von der Heydt has been talking to potential buyers after a deal to sell itself to crypto-derivatives exchange BitMEX fell through, people familiar with the matter have said. A sale may value the bank at around €20 million ($19.6 million), the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.
Bitcoin Group, also based in Germany, owns futurum bank AG, a trading platform for digital currencies. Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty they’ll result in any transaction.
A spokeswoman for Bankhaus von der Heydt declined to comment.
Bankhaus von der Heydt became one of the first lenders in Germany to offer trading and custody services for digital assets, betting that demand for cryptocurrencies would help it reverse years of losses. But costs to build out the technology have pushed the bank further into the red.
Owner Dietrich von Boetticher is reluctant to continue injecting capital and without a fresh source of cash, the bank may be forced to shut down, according to the people. Bankhaus von der Heydt recently cancelled servicing contracts with several crypto funds in a step that would facilitate an orderly wind-down, they said.
The BitMEX deal collapsed after that company’s backers agreed to pay $100 million to settle allegations that they allowed years of illegal trades, and two founders admitted they failed to establish an anti-money-laundering program at the exchange.
Any bidders for Bankhaus von der Heydt will have to pass muster with German regulator BaFin, which is monitoring the situation, the people said.
–With assistance from Nicholas Comfort.
©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
