Herford, December 13, 2022 – Bitcoin Group SE (ISIN DE000A1TNV91) has signed an agreement with the owner of Bankhaus von der Heydt, Dietrich von Boetticher, to acquire 100% of the shares. The final closing of the transaction is still subject to approval by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and is expected for the third quarter of 2023.

Bankhaus von der Heydt holds a full banking license and is one of the leading providers in Germany offering custody and tokenization of digital assets. The purchase price consists of a cash payment in the amount of EUR 14 million, which may be modified depending on developments in the equity of the target company, as well as 150,000 shares from a capital increase against contributions in kind of Bitcoin Group SE.

Through the merger, Bitcoin Group SE and Bankhaus von der Heydt, two crypto pioneers, will act together in the future. The aim is to seamlessly connect the banking and capital market infrastructures with the advantages of blockchain technology and thus to offer all banking, securities and cryptocurrency trading services from a single source in a comprehensively regulated and legally secure manner as well as completely independently.

"With the acquisition of Bankhaus von der Heydt, we are combining a traditional crypto-related bank with one of Germany's oldest cryptocurrency trading platforms and will be able to operate completely independently of third parties in the future. For Bitcoin Group, it also opens up the opportunity to expand the business beyond the existing activities in the field of securities trading and trading as well as the custody of cryptocurrencies. Especially in an environment with increasing regulation in the field of cryptocurrencies, the acquisition of Bankhaus von der Heydt is a significant step that will help Bitcoin Group to consolidate and expand its market position as one of the leading European cryptocurrency trading platforms," says Marco Bodewein, CEO of Bitcoin Group SE.