Crypto Exchange BitMEX Fails to Acquire German Bank: Report

BXM Operations’, a subsidiary founded by BitMEX CEO Alexander Höptner and its CFO Stephan Lutz, failed to acquire the Munich private bank, Bankhaus von der Heydt.

Both parties agreed to cancel the planned deal, German media reported on Thursday.

• The acquisition was greenlighted by German regulator BaFIN back in January when BXM Operations signed a purchase agreement with Dietrich von Boetticher, the bank’s current owner.
• A BitMEX spokesperson told the German media that “the two parties have mutually and amicably decided to discontinue the proposed acquisition.”
• As of April 1st, both parties declined to provide details or reasons regarding the failed acquisition.
• Back in January, BXM Operation already announced the plan to acquire one of the oldest banks in Germany. The deal would have given BitMEX a banking license in Germany, which is essential for providing financial services related to digital assets.
• Bankhaus von der Heydt, founded back in 1754, has been recording operational losses year after year. In the financial years from 2014 to 2019, according to the report, “the result from normal business activities was significantly negative.”
• In October, Bankhaus von der Heydt partnered up with Fireblocks to offer crypto services for its clients.
• The Seychelles-based BitMEX has been under pressure for its friction with U.S. regulatory bodies, which charged the exchange of offering U.S. customers crypto trading services in violation of federal law.
• BitMEX eventually reached a $100 million resolution with the CFTC to settle the fight last August.