bitcoin group: Bitcoin Group weighs bid for 268-year-old German bank

Bitcoin Group SE is weighing 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, people familiar with the matter said.

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, the people 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 is a Germany-based crypto and blockchain investor that owns futurum bank AG, a trading platform for digital currencies.

Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty they’ll result in a sale, according to the people. A spokeswoman for Bankhaus von der Heydt declined to comment, while a representative for Bitcoin Group had no immediate 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.

Bitcoin Lingers Under $20,000 for Longest Stretch Since Late 2020

Bitcoin has spent more than two weeks trading below a key threshold of $20,000 for the first time since breaching that level in late 2020, indicating a lack of optimism among traders as the asset class’s trademark volatility dissipates in the face of rising interest rates. The largest cryptocurrency by market value edged lower for a fourth trading session, dropping less than 1% to $18,969 as of 9:33 a.m. in New York.