For years he shaped the financial center of Frankfurt and Deutsche Bank. One sentence cost him and his employer dearly. Rolf Breuer has now died at the age of 86.
The former CEO of Deutsche Bank, Rolf Breuer, is dead. The former CEO and Chairman of the Supervisory Board died on Wednesday at the age of 86 after a long illness with his family, Deutsche Bank announced in Frankfurt.
Breuer spent almost his entire professional life at Deutsche Bank. During his time as CEO of the bank from May 1997 to May 2002, he drove the internationalization of the group and expanded the capital market business. Breuer then headed the supervisory board of Germany’s largest bank for four years.
The current chairman of the supervisory board, Alexander Wynaendts, praised Breuer’s achievements: With the takeover of the US bank Bankers Trust, he made a significant contribution “to ensuring that Deutsche Bank can now support its customers worldwide in all financial matters and has the global network and expertise necessary to do so.” With Rolf-Ernst Breuer, Deutsche Bank is losing one of its most influential personalities.
Breuer’s time in office was not without turbulence, however. The then head of Deutsche Bank spoke just a few sentences into a reporter’s microphone at the beginning of 2002. In the short conversation with Bloomberg TV, which was published on February 4, 2002, Breuer questioned Leo Kirch’s creditworthiness. His media group went under shortly afterwards. Throughout his life, Kirch blamed Breuer and Deutsche Bank for this. It was only years later that the bank reached a settlement with Kirch’s heirs worth millions.
Source: Stern
