Germany’s direct bank, DKB, is undergoing a major transformation under its DKB 2030 strategy. With 5.9 million customers on board, the institution is elevating its securities offering to a flagship product alongside everyday current accounts. The goal is clear: more than double the number of securities accounts to two million by 2030 and turn brokerage into a lasting engine of customer loyalty and revenue growth.
To deliver on this vision, DKB selected Upvest in September 2025 as its long-term infrastructure partner.
From the end of 2026, every new securities account will run on Upvest’s cloud-native Investment API.
Existing accounts will migrate the following year.
The platform covers the full stack—brokerage, custody, and settlement—while removing legacy constraints that typically slow large-scale banks.
The partnership unlocks practical advantages that matter to both the bank and its clients.
Customers will gain access to modern features such as fractional investing, automated savings plans, and personalised portfolios.
Real-time processing, intuitive interfaces, and greater transparency replace outdated workflows.
Behind the scenes, automation slashes middle- and back-office costs, enabling competitive pricing and faster product roll-outs.
The infrastructure is also ready for upcoming German pension frameworks, including the Altersvorsorgedepot and Frühstart-Rente.
At the same time, Upvest has solved one of the biggest legal headaches in European investing: fractional shares.
Many platforms have historically wrapped fractions as derivatives or debt instruments to bypass local laws.
That approach triggered extra regulatory burdens under PRIIPs, exposed investors to issuer counterparty risk, and weakened protections in insolvency.
Upvest took a different route.
By operating under German civil law, the company’s fractions engine delivers genuine co-ownership—known as Bruchteilseigentum.
Each investor holds an “ideal share” of the underlying security with full in-rem rights.
Assets remain bankruptcy-remote, integrate seamlessly into standard custody accounts, and avoid reclassification as derivatives.
Consequently, PRIIPs documentation is not required.
French regulator AMF has already validated the structure for one of Upvest’s clients, confirming that the fractions qualify as equity securities.
Because the legal status travels with the German-law instrument, Upvest’s B2B partners can offer the same true-ownership experience across the entire EU and the UK without modifying the product or adding local wrappers.
Together, these developments signal a broader shift. Established banks like DKB can now combine their trusted brand and scale with the speed and innovation of digital infrastructure.
Fintechs and institutions gain a single, regulator-cleared way to offer fractional investing at meaningful size. The result is more inclusive access to capital markets for Europeans—precisely the kind of progress the industry has needed.