Gerhard Bruckermann

“When I arrived, Depfa wasn’t just German,” says Gerhard Bruckermann. “It was ultra-German. This was 13 years ago, just after privatization, and nobody thought about profitability.”

How times change. Last year, Depfa increased group net income by 57% to €370 million. Its return on equity was 29%. And Depfa today is at the very least a European bank. Of its staff, the largest single group by nationality are the Irish. The Germans are in second place.