Hilmar Kopper
Hilmar Kopper | |
|---|---|
| Born | 13 March 1935 Osłonino, Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland |
| Died | 11 November 2021 (aged 86) |
| Occupation | Banker |
| Years active | 1954–2002 |
| Known for | Chairman of Deutsche Bank (1989–1997) |
Hilmar Kopper (born 13 March 1935 – passed away 11 November 2021) was a prominent German banker who served as chairman of the Board at Deutsche Bank from 1989 until 1997.
Life and career
Kopper entered the world in Osłonino, located in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland, as the second child among four siblings in a Mennonite family that was expelled following World War II.
Due to limited financial means for formal education, Kopper began his professional journey in 1954 by joining Deutsche Bank as a trainee at its Rheinisch-Westfälische Bank branch in Köln-Mülheim, where he spent his entire banking career. His early assignments included a posting at J. Henry Schroder Banking Corp. in New York City and subsequently working within Deutsche Bank's foreign affairs division in Düsseldorf. In 1972, he was appointed to the board of Deutsch-Asiatische Bank AG and assumed the role of General Representative that same year. Kopper was promoted to Deutsche Bank’s board of directors in 1977.
After the assassination of then-CEO Alfred Herrhausen in 1989, Kopper took over as chairman (Vorstandssprecher). Under his stewardship, Deutsche Bank evolved into an international financial powerhouse. He maintained the chairman position until 1997 and later led the supervisory board until 2002.
Beyond Deutsche Bank, Kopper chaired DaimlerChrysler’s supervisory board from 1998 through 2007 and participated as a member of the Bilderberg Group Steering Committee. He also contributed as a juror for the Franz Werfel Human Rights Award.
Controversy
In 1994, Kopper gained significant media attention when he described DM 50 million as "peanuts," underscoring the disparity between bankers' valuations of money and public perception. Linguists subsequently designated this expression as Germany’s Un-word of the Year. Embracing this notoriety with humor, Kopper later featured in an advertisement for Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung using the tagline "There is always a clever mind behind it."
Private life
During his trainee period in the United States, Kopper encountered author Ernest Hemingway in Acapulco, Mexico, in 1958 and remained an admirer of Hemingway’s literary work throughout his life. He married Irene in 1961, with whom he had three children, including historian . The couple separated in 1999. In 2003, Kopper remarried , who was the widow of Willy Brandt. He passed away at age 86 following a brief illness.