Germany, considered Europe's most reliable debtor, is having trouble selling its bonds, just as it seeks billions to tackle the energy crisis, Reuters reported. Recent weak auctions have demonstrated the challenges of issuing debt in markets racked with uncertainty about interest rates and state spending, and made it harder for Germany - typically a reluctant spender - as it seeks to fund its 200 billion euro ($201.40 billion) scheme to cut domestic energy costs.

Germany is preparing for a worst-case scenario in which it needs to double financial aid to Uniper SE, the nation’s biggest gas supplier, to €60 billion, Bloomberg News reported. Uniper’s financial situation is worsening with an expected adjusted net loss of €3.2 billion ($3.2 billion) for the first nine months of the year as it buys more expensive wholesale gas to meet supply contracts after Moscow cut flows. Prices would have to stay high for two years for the shortfall to hit the government’s maximum projection.

The German parliament on Friday cleared the way for the government to provide up to 200 billion euros ($195 billion) in subsidies to households and businesses to ease the strain of high energy prices, a plan that has been greeted with suspicion elsewhere in Europe, the Associated Press reported. Lawmakers agreed to let a government economic stabilization fund borrow the money and approved an exemption from a rule that imposes severe limits on running up new debt.

Customers of German cryptocurrency bank Nuri (formerly known as Bitwala) are being urged to withdraw their money before December 18 in order for the “company to be terminated and liquidated,” BollyInside.com reported. Due to the lengthy crypto bear market and macroeconomic factors, Nuri filed for insolvency in August. Trading will be available through November’s end. “Over the past three months, we have worked closely with our insolvency administrators on a restructuring plan during the preliminary insolvency proceedings and have looked for a possible acquisition to carry on our story.

German prosecutors have searched the headquarters of Deutsche Bank in connection with an ongoing investigation of the multibillion-euro tax fraud scheme known as "cum-ex", Deutsche Bank said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Germany's largest lender is one of many banks that prosecutors have raided in connection with the tax scheme that thrived more than a decade ago.

Germany and the Netherlands have proposed a package of 10 measures that the European Union could use to curb gas prices and avoid fuel rationing, including looking into setting a new benchmark price for liquefied natural gas. The plan, seen by Reuters and shared with other EU countries before the bloc's energy ministers meet on Wednesday, calls for the EU to kickstart joint gas buying, to avoid one country outbidding another and driving prices higher.

Germany is coming around to backing the idea of joint EU debt issuance to help cushion the blow of the energy crisis, as long as the freshly raised money is disbursed to struggling member states as loans, not grants, Bloomberg News reported. The change in the position follows criticism from other leaders that Germany’s €200 billion national aid plan could trigger economic imbalances in the bloc. The EU’s pandemic-era SURE program — which offers employment support of as much as €100 billion in the form of loans — could provide a blueprint for a new debt-backed instrument, we’ve been told.

Germany has hired a number of investment banks for a new syndicated 30-year bond sale on Monday, according to memos from two lead managers seen by Reuters. The bond, due 15 August 2053, will carry a coupon of 1.8% and "will be launched and priced in the near future, subject to market conditions," the memos said, a phrase debt management offices usually use a day before a sale. Germany hired Barclays, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan for the sale, the memos said. Read more.

The German Cabinet on Wednesday approved plans to loosen insolvency rules until the end of next year in the face of exploding energy and raw material prices, Reuters reported. The planned easing of the law, which must be put to parliament, applies to the obligation to file for insolvency in the case of over-indebtedness. Companies are to be exempt from this if they can prove that their business is financed for the next four months rather than the current 12-month requirement.

The majority of funds made available as part of the European Union's pandemic recovery fund have not yet been disbursed, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday when asked about the possibility of further joint debt to address the energy crisis, Reuters reported. "These funds have overwhelmingly not been spent yet," Scholz said after a meeting with the Dutch prime minister in Berlin, adding that this support could be "particularly effective" now that a second crisis has followed the COVID-19 pandemic.