Sustainche™ remembers a Good Banker

Sustainche in the meantime is well known for his – let’s say – scepticism against banks and bankers. Banks and bankers are something like a different universe that Sustainche can’t enjoy. To enjoy is important for Sustainche 🙂 

For Polar Bear Sustainche it is very natural to think about ‘Bad Banks’. In this respect he was surprised when during the public discussion about the ‘Global Financial Crisis’ ‘Bad Banks’ became a terminus technicus in the official banking world. “Comical human mammals”, Sustainche has a good laugh. Today accounts are virtually washed clean by allocating tremendous losses (or what is called ‘toxic assets’ … language is unmasking) in Bad Banks. In consequence and if there exist Bad Banks, it is only logic if there are also Good Banks.

Good Banks would be something that Sustainche likes. However, Good Banks need ‘Good Bankers’ … ? Sustainche undertook extensive efforts in finding good bankers. Mr. Josef Ackermann, the famous CEO of the famous German Bank, was dismissed first. With his research Sustainche, however, found another CEO of the German Bank who complied with his personal perception. It is Mr. Alfred Herrhausen. Alfred Herrhausen was assassinated on 30^th November 1989, a few weeks after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Sustainche already reported about this historic event. Although until today nobody could be personally named as to be suspect in murder of Mr. Herrhausen, third generation terrorists of the German Red Army Faction (RAF) are held accountable. 

Not only Sustainche wonders why the RAF should have murdered Mr. Herrhausen. Barely because he was the highest representative of a huge capitalistic institute … ? Sustainche found an interesting document. During the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund in Washington D.C. in 1987 and after intensive discussions with the Mexican President Miguel de Madrid, Alfred Herrhausen made his international bankers colleagues outraged by proposing a debt relief for developing countries. Mr. Herrhausen’s analysis was clear and easy enough so that also Sustainche can understand the central message: developing countries will never be able to pay back their credits, and in any case they would, it would even worsen the entire economical situation. Thus an agreed re-launch of the economy is more feasible. 

This example shows how much Mr. Herrhausen was ahead of the times and therefore his banker colleagues immediately declared his initiative as to be something like an ‘intellectual remark’ … nothing else. It was not ! Today many reasonable people around the globe realize as precisely as Alfred Herrhausen 22 years ago that the International Monetary Fund’s and World Bank’s policy is nothing to nominate for the Nobel Peace Prize awarded in Oslo. Being a refugee due to climate change, Sustainche would rather send these IMF and WB guys to be awarded in The Hague … 😉 

Sustainche has no doubt that Mr. Herrhausen broke a taboo of the international banking world. He looked beyond the small plate of banking business and shareholder value, and felt the traditional banking responsibility for people and societies in large. Therefore he was murdered by left-wing radical RAF terrorists … ? Well, Sustainche is sure that in November 1989 there were many others who had a vivid interest that this ‘socialistic’ Alfred Herrhausen should leave this planet … . 

“We need to say what we think. We need to do what we say. We need to be what we do.” Alfred Herrhausen wrote. Sustainche is reminded on Mahatma Gandhi’s sentence: “Be the change you want to see in the world.” For Sustainche Mr. Herrhausen indeed is the best practise example of a Good Banker and he would be glad if today such a personality would exist to support Sustainable Development. 

Perhaps, German Universities should start educating economy students in the spirit of Alfred Herrhausen … 😉

~ by sustainche on November 30, 2009.