Sparkasse
Local bankDGS €100k protectedBest for: German residentsBest for: Branch networkBest for: Local presence
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Deposit protection: DGS €100k (DE) + institutional protection scheme
- Largest German branch & ATM network
- local DE IBAN
- regional savings banks
Cons
- No fully remote opening
Rating breakdown
Foreigner onboarding0
USD handling20
Transfers75
Value & fees30
Licence & deposit protection
DGS €100k protectedDGS €100k (DE) + institutional protection scheme
This is a licensed bank, so eligible deposits are protected by the deposit guarantee scheme (DGS) up to €100,000 per customer. That's a key safety factor when choosing.
- Licence
- Bank · BaFin
- IBAN
- DE
- SEPA Instant
- Send & receive
- Verification of Payee (VoP)
- Rolling out
Editorial review
Sparkasse is a licensed bank (BaFin), so eligible deposits carry DGS €100k (DE) + institutional protection scheme.
It is a local bank licensed in DE supporting EUR. FX model: Card-network rate + bank markup.
It tends to suit german residents, branch network, local presence.
Fees & terms
- Exchange rate
- Card-network rate + bank markup
- Card cost
- Paid monthly account fee
- Currencies
- EUR
- Cards
- Global Physical, Global Virtual
- Transfers
- SEPA in/out, SEPA Instant in/out, SWIFT in/out
- Payments
- Apple Pay, Google Pay
- Licence
- Bank — BaFin
- IBAN
- DE
- SEPA Instant
- Send & receive
- Verification of Payee (VoP)
- Rolling out
- FX model
- Card-network rate + bank markup
- Opening requirements
- Needs Anmeldung/German address; branch opening typical
- English support
- No
- Remote opening
- No
- Headquarters
- Germany
Also consider
FAQ
- Is my money protected?
- Yes. Sparkasse holds a full bank licence (BaFin), so eligible deposits are protected by DGS €100k (DE) + institutional protection scheme.
- What IBAN and transfers?
- Sparkasse issues a DE IBAN. SEPA Instant: send + receive.
- Can I open remotely, in English?
- Opening may need a branch visit or local docs. Support is mainly local-language. Requirements: Needs Anmeldung/German address; branch opening typical.
Data provenance & verification
Every fact is checked against an official source and stamped with a date. We re-check fees quarterly and document requirements twice a year. Fields not yet independently verified are labelled honestly.
Updated: Dataset compiled: