Max Warburg
Max Moritz Warburg | |
|---|---|
| Born | Error: Invalid birth date for calculating age Hamburg, Germany |
| Died | 1946-12-26 |
| Occupation(s) | Financier, banker |
| Known for | Head of M. M. Warburg & Co., member of the Warburg banking family |
Max Moritz Warburg (born 5 June 1867, died 26 December 1946) was a distinguished German financier and a key figure within the affluent Warburg family headquartered in Hamburg, Germany.
Early life
Max Warburg was among seven offspring of Moritz Warburg, who managed the family's banking enterprise in Hamburg, and Charlotte Oppenheim, a member of the esteemed Oppenheim family. His brothers included the art scholar Aby Warburg, Federal Reserve pioneer Paul Warburg, and Felix Warburg, who was both a partner at Kuhn, Loeb & Co. and married into the family of Jacob Schiff.
Career
His professional training spanned financial centers such as Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Paris, and London. Between 1910 and 1938, he led M. M. Warburg & Co. in Hamburg. In his capacity as head of the bank, he counseled Kaiser Wilhelm II prior to the outbreak of World War I. Although the Nazi regime gained power in the 1930s, Warburg initially stayed in Germany and held a position on the board of the German Reichsbank under Governor Hjalmar Schacht starting in 1933. Following the implementation of the 1935 Nuremberg laws and escalating Aryanization policies, he divested from his bank and relocated to the United States in 1938.
Personal life
In 1899, Max Warburg married Alice Magnus. Together they had four daughters—including Lola Helene Nina Hahn-Warburg, who played a pivotal role in organizing the Kindertransport to Britain—and one son, Eric Warburg (1900–1990). Eric contributed to the Allied effort during WWII through service with the OSS and later established E.M. Warburg & Co., which evolved into Warburg Pincus. His career featured major Wall Street transactions alongside partners like Alan Dulles and ongoing associations with John J. McCloy.