Abstract By combining bases that are known to racemize benzylic amines with a nickel (II) salt, active nickel nanoparticles were obtained that can be used as catalysts in the racemization of both aliphatic and benzylic primary amines. The nanoparticles are stable in the ionic liquid tetrabutylammonium bromide and can complete most racemizations within a few hours with excellent selectivity. The problem of the incompatibility of the strongly ...