On May 8, 2015, the German States (Bundesländer) have adopted a law implementing the European Deposit Guarantee Scheme Directive. The new law will be submitted to the German President (Bundespräsident), Joachim Gauck, for his signature and it is anticipated that it will enter into force on July 3, 2015.
The law is intended to better protect the deposits of bank customers in the event of a bank failure. Generally, the law increases the amounts of the deposit insurance. The deposits will now be guaranteed up to the amount of €100,000. In addition, certain deposits (such as deposits based on the sale of private property, specific insurance payments, or severance payments) will be guaranteed up to the amount of €500,000. Also, the period for any compensation payments to be made will be decreased from the current 20 business days to 7 business days.