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Source: AFP
Joerg Kukies, Germany's caller concern minister, is simply a erstwhile concern banker who has agelong been 1 of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's closest advisers, astir precocious arsenic a authorities secretary.
The German person archetypal brought Kukies into the corridors of powerfulness successful Berlin successful 2018, erstwhile Scholz was concern curate nether Angela Merkel -- a determination that caused overmuch consternation successful his centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD).
At the time, Kukies was moving arsenic the co-head of concern slope Goldman Sachs successful Germany.
The Handelsblatt concern regular described his astonishment power from banking to politics arsenic "a existent bombshell".
But successful spite of the immense wage cut, helium stayed -- and 3 years later, erstwhile Scholz became chancellor, switched to being an economical advisor successful the chancellery.
The 56-year-old has been a subordinate of the SPD since helium was 18 years aged and had a little stint arsenic caput of the party's younker helping successful Rhineland-Palatinate authorities successful the aboriginal 1990s.
He gave up that presumption erstwhile helium moved to Paris to survey economics, aboriginal completing a master's grade astatine Harvard University and a doctorate successful Chicago.
In 2001 Kukies took a occupation astatine Goldman Sachs successful London, earlier moving to Frankfurt to enactment arsenic an equities adept for the bank.
Chief negotiator
In 2014 helium became a associated CEO of Goldman Sachs AG and managing manager of the Frankfurt branch, overseeing the bank's concern successful Germany and Austria.
Kukies was chiefly liable for securities trading and "derivative fiscal merchandise solutions", helium told the mag Wirtschaftswoche astatine the time.
During the Covid pandemic, Kukies was the caput of the Economic Stabilisation Fund, which offered national guarantees connected loans and recapitalisation measures to assistance support companies afloat during the crisis.
He besides acted arsenic main negotiator during the impermanent nationalisation of German hose Lufthansa.
However, his estimation took a stroke during the Wirecard scandal, Germany's astir notorious lawsuit of accounting fraud.
After Wirecard collapsed into insolvency successful 2020, it emerged that the company's disgraced CEO Markus Braun had met Kukies astatine the concern ministry successful November 2019 -- starring to calls for his resignation.
The broader lawsuit prompted an overhaul of Germany's concern watchdog BaFin, heavy criticised for ignoring aboriginal warnings astir Wirecard.
Spending decisions
As good arsenic being an adviser, Kukies has besides represented Scholz astatine G20 and G7 summits.
His promotion to a ministerial station comes aft Scholz sacked erstwhile concern curate Christian Lindner, starring to the illness of his three-way coalition.
With Lindner's FDP enactment retired of government, Scholz is hoping to clasp connected to powerfulness until adjacent twelvemonth arsenic the caput of a number conjugation consisting of his SPD and the Greens.
As concern minister, Kukies volition find his country for manoeuvre constricted by the government's deficiency of a majority, according to analysts.
A number medication is improbable to beryllium capable to walk the 2025 budget, which was the taxable of months of bitter negotiations earlier the illness of the coalition.
This volition not effect successful immoderate benignant of authorities shutdown however, with regular spending to continue.
Less arguable measures and urgent spending decisions, specified arsenic boosting enactment for Ukraine, could besides perchance beryllium agreed connected with the backing of absorption parties.
German far-left absorption person Sahra Wagenknecht was the archetypal to criticise Kukies's assignment connected Thursday.
The information that the Social Democrats, of each parties, had entrusted a erstwhile Goldman Sachs banker with the task of drafting up the national fund said "a batch astir the authorities of the SPD", she said.
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Source: AFP
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