Bitcoin Bundesverband: the German Bitcoin Association

On its mission page, the association names its areas of work: lobbying toward politicians in Berlin and Brussels, direct access for member companies to policymakers, support for the technical development of bitcoin, education for politics, science and society, events, and networking among companies, investors and experts. Committees for education and ESG and a marketing working group carry the work.

Its policy goals are tax relief for bitcoin, support for bitcoin mining, an end to treating small private mining as a commercial business, rules that let bitcoin work as a means of payment and a store of value, and harmonized rules across Europe. The imprint gives Potsdam as the seat and Philipp J. A. Hartmannsgruber as chair of the board, and it states that the association is not yet entered in the register of associations.

In Germany a private investor who sells bitcoin after holding it for more than one year pays no tax on the gain, under section 23 of the Einkommensteuergesetz. A sale within the year is taxed as income. A draft bill from the Federal Ministry of Finance would replace this rule with a flat withholding tax from 2027, as the page on bitcoin in Germany explains.

The Bitcoin Bundesverband opposes that change. A "Taskforce Haltefrist" of the association started a petition to the Bundestag in August 2026, together with the ProHaltefrist campaign. It asks to keep crypto-assets classed as "other economic goods" and so to keep the tax exemption after one year; gains within the year would stay taxable. A petition that collects 30,000 online signatures in time gets a public hearing in the Bundestag's Petitions Committee.

Bitcoin differs from other crypto-assets in ways that matter for law and for investors. Its protocol caps the supply at 21 million coins, and it has no issuer, so under MiCA bitcoin itself needs no issuer license. The exchanges and custodians that handle it for customers do need a license from BaFin. Professional investors treat bitcoin as an asset class of its own, next to equities and gold, and they weigh its high volatility and the custody risk. The knowledge hub answer on bitcoin and the Bitcoin for Investors masterclass go through these reasons and risks.

Finance Loop took part in the founding on September 26, 2024, and is one of the founding members of the association. The post quotes Finance Loop's aim to explain to finance professionals why and how blockchains can be used in finance, with a focus on compliance and regulation. Finance Loop names the Bitcoin Bundesverband among its partners in its post on knowledge transfer on digital currencies.

Dr. Mathias Linkerhand, who teaches Finance Loop's Bitcoin for Investors masterclass, is a board member of the German Bitcoin Association, according to his profile. The one-day masterclass is held in German for investors, asset managers, family offices and advisors, in Frankfurt, Berlin, Munich and other cities.

Not yet. The association publishes its statutes, and its imprint states that it is not yet entered in the register of associations. Its seat is Potsdam, and it can be reached through the board.

Yes. Events are one of the areas of work on its mission page, next to training and information events on bitcoin. Finance Loop events on bitcoin, custody and regulation are on the events page, and the bitcoin seminar in Germany lists the masterclass locations.