DZ Bank AG is the fourth largest bank in Germany by asset size and the central institution for more than 900 cooperative banks and their 12,000 branch offices. Within the Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken Co-operative financial network, which is one of Germany's largest private-sector financial service organizations, DZ Bank functions both as a central institution and as a corporate and investment bank.

As a holding, the DZ Bank Group defines itself primarily as a service provider for the local cooperative banks and their 30 million or so clients. The DZ Bank Group includes DVB Bank, a transportation finance bank; Bausparkasse Schwäbisch Hall, a building society; DG HYP, a provider of commercial real estate finance; DZ Privatbank Gruppe; R+V Versicherung, an insurance company; TeamBank, a provider of consumer finance; Union Investment Group, an asset management company; VR Leasing; and various other specialized institutions.