Difference between revisions of "Jörg Asmussen"

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'''Jörg Asmussen''' is a German economist and former ministerial official. Since October 2020, he has been the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Board member of the Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft. Previously, he was an State Secretary in the [[Germany/Ministry/Finance|Federal Ministry of Finance]] from 2008 to 2011, then a member of the Executive Board of the [[European Central Bank]] until 2013, and then an official State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs until [[2015]].
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'''Jörg Asmussen''' is a German economist and former ministerial official with close ties to the [[financial industry]]. He was State Secretary in the [[Germany/Ministry/Finance|Federal Ministry of Finance]] from 2008 to 2011, then a member of the Executive Board of the [[European Central Bank]] until 2013, and then State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs until [[2015]]. After that, he started working for [[Lazard Frères]].
  
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Jörg Asmussen attracted criticism as one of the leading financial managers in Germany. It began with the suspicion of a [[conflict of interest]]. As a supporter of the [[deregulation of financial markets]] and the purchase speculative [[asset-backed securities]] and [[financial derivatives]], Asmussen was a one of the creators of the pre-2007 financial boom. When [[2008 Financial Crisis|the crisis began with the collapse of several banks]], it was precisely the transactions with these highly complex or risky securities that were identified as the causes of the crash. It is therefore incomprehensible to critics why Asmussen was appointed to the ECB Executive Board and was supposed to manage the crisis which he himself helped to conjure up from a high governing position.<ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/europas-schuldenkrise/portraet-joerg-asmussen-der-brandbekaempfer-1966178.html</ref>
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Jörg Asmussen attracted criticism as one of the leading financial managers of [[Germany]]. Throughout his career, there were multiple [[conflicts of interest]].<ref>https://lobbypedia.de/wiki/J%C3%B6rg_Asmussen#Banker_und_Lobbyisten_im_Bundesfinanzministerium</ref> As a supporter of the [[deregulation of financial markets]] and the purchase speculative [[asset-backed securities]] and [[financial derivatives]], Asmussen was a one of the creators of the pre-2007 financial boom. When [[2008 Financial Crisis|the crisis began in 2008 with the collapse of several banks]], it was precisely the transactions with these highly complex or risky securities that were identified as the causes of the crash. To critics it was incomprehensible why Asmussen was appointed to the [[European Central Bank]] Executive Board and was supposed to manage the crisis which he himself helped to conjure up from a high governing position.<ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/europas-schuldenkrise/portraet-joerg-asmussen-der-brandbekaempfer-1966178.html</ref>
  
 
==Background==
 
==Background==
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Asmussen's father was the head of the municipal fire department, his mother was a teacher. After graduating from the Goethe School in Flensburg and completing his civil service, he studied economics in [[University of Giessen|Giessen]] and [[University of Bonn|Bonn]] from 1988 to 1994 (with Professor of International Economics [[Axel A. Weber]], among others) and also received an MBA at the [[Bocconi University|Milan University of Economics Luigi Bocconi]]. After completing his studies, he worked for two years as a project manager in the field of European Economic, Social and labour market policy at the [[Institut für Sozialforschung und Gesellschaftspolitik|Institute for Social Research and Social Policy]] in [[Cologne]].<ref>https://www.munzinger.de/document/00000026707</ref> Asmussen has been a member of the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany]] (SPD) since 1986, with a break between 2018 and 2020.<ref>https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/joerg-asmussen-die-spd-koennte-ihren-star-oekonomen-verlieren-1.3991995</ref>
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Asmussen's father was the head of the municipal fire department, his mother was a teacher. After graduating from the Goethe School in [[Flensburg]], he studied economics in [[University of Giessen|Giessen]] and [[University of Bonn|Bonn]] from 1988 to 1994 (with Professor of International Economics [[Axel A. Weber]], among others) and also received an MBA at the [[Bocconi University|Milan University of Economics Luigi Bocconi]]. After completing his studies, he worked for two years as a project manager in the field of European Economic, Social and Labour market policy at the [[Institut für Sozialforschung und Gesellschaftspolitik|Institute for Social Research and Social Policy]] in [[Cologne]].<ref>https://www.munzinger.de/document/00000026707</ref> Asmussen has been a member of the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany]] (SPD) since 1986, with a break between 2018 and 2020.<ref>https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/joerg-asmussen-die-spd-koennte-ihren-star-oekonomen-verlieren-1.3991995</ref>
  
 
==Career in the Federal Ministry of Finance==
 
==Career in the Federal Ministry of Finance==
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===Encouraging financial speculation===
 
===Encouraging financial speculation===
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According to Dieter Degler, True Sale International GmbH (TSI), a trading platform and lobbying association for the expansion of the German securitization market via [[asset-backed securities]] (ABS), was founded in 2003 under Asmussen's "spiritual patronage and active assistance".<ref>http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/degler-denkt-asmussens-rollenspiel-1.542284</ref> He was subsequently a member of the Shareholders' Advisory Board of TSI on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Finance.
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According to [[Dieter Degler]], True Sale International GmbH (TSI), a trading platform and lobbying association for the expansion of the German securitization market via [[asset-backed securities]] (ABS), was founded in 2003 under Asmussen's "spiritual patronage and active assistance".<ref>http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/degler-denkt-asmussens-rollenspiel-1.542284</ref> He was subsequently a member of the Shareholders' Advisory Board of TSI on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Finance.
  
 
Asmussen convinced Eichel of the idea of making his former professor [[Axel Weber]] the new president of the [[Deutsche Bundesbank]] as the successor to [[Ernst Welteke]], who resigned in April 2004.<ref>https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Schattenmann-unter-Beschuss-3381720.html</ref> In the government coalition agreement of the "Grand Coalition" of 2005, Asmussen advocated the inclusion of the points of reducing "superfluous regulations" and the "expansion of the securitization market" for the financial market.<ref>http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/0,1518,630396,00.html</ref> Under Asmussen's name, an article entitled "Securitisations from the Point of view of the Ministry of Finance" was published in the Zeitschrift für das gesamte Kreditwesen (ZKW) in 2006, in which ABS was presented very positively. These financial products later turned out to be a major trigger of the international financial crisis from 2007 onwards.<ref>https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deutschland/joerg-asmussen-kuenftiger-ezb-chefvolkswirt-ist-gnadenlos-pragmatisch/4684568.html</ref> However, Asmussen did not write the article himself, according to his own information, it was written by officials of the department.<ref> Mark Schieritz, Jana Simon: Jörg Asmussen: „Spaß ist privat“. In: Zeit-Magazin, Nr. 39/2013, 19. September 2013. </ref>
 
Asmussen convinced Eichel of the idea of making his former professor [[Axel Weber]] the new president of the [[Deutsche Bundesbank]] as the successor to [[Ernst Welteke]], who resigned in April 2004.<ref>https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Schattenmann-unter-Beschuss-3381720.html</ref> In the government coalition agreement of the "Grand Coalition" of 2005, Asmussen advocated the inclusion of the points of reducing "superfluous regulations" and the "expansion of the securitization market" for the financial market.<ref>http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/0,1518,630396,00.html</ref> Under Asmussen's name, an article entitled "Securitisations from the Point of view of the Ministry of Finance" was published in the Zeitschrift für das gesamte Kreditwesen (ZKW) in 2006, in which ABS was presented very positively. These financial products later turned out to be a major trigger of the international financial crisis from 2007 onwards.<ref>https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deutschland/joerg-asmussen-kuenftiger-ezb-chefvolkswirt-ist-gnadenlos-pragmatisch/4684568.html</ref> However, Asmussen did not write the article himself, according to his own information, it was written by officials of the department.<ref> Mark Schieritz, Jana Simon: Jörg Asmussen: „Spaß ist privat“. In: Zeit-Magazin, Nr. 39/2013, 19. September 2013. </ref>
  
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In his capacity as head of department and later State Secretary, Asmussen was a member of the Supervisory Board of ''Mittelstandsbank IKB'' and the ''Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau'' (KfW) as a representative of the federal government. As a member of the Supervisory Board of IKB, Asmussen campaigned to buy those securities that brought IKB into difficulties in the summer of [[2007]] as a result of the crisis on the US subprime market. The state-owned development bank KfW then made billions available to save them.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi6pQ9jK6PE</ref><ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/debatten/europas-zukunft/peter-gauweiler-zur-zukunft-europas-wer-spart-geht-am-ende-leer-aus-11917052.html</ref> In parallel to his supervisory Board membership at the two banking houses, Asmussen was also a member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority ([[BaFin]]), an organization that is intended to prohibit banks from risky trading in securities. This led to the accusation of many critics that Asmussen had sat on supervisory bodies that controlled his own business.<ref>http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/degler-denkt-asmussens-rollenspiel-1.542284</ref><ref>https://taz.de/!5112237/</ref>
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In his capacity as head of department and later State Secretary, Asmussen was a member of the Supervisory Board of ''Mittelstandsbank IKB'' and the ''Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau'' (KfW) as a representative of the federal government. As a member of the Supervisory Board of IKB, Asmussen campaigned to buy exactly those securities that brought IKB into difficulties in the summer of [[2007]] as a result of the crisis on the US subprime market. The state-owned development bank KfW then made billions available to save them.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi6pQ9jK6PE</ref><ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/debatten/europas-zukunft/peter-gauweiler-zur-zukunft-europas-wer-spart-geht-am-ende-leer-aus-11917052.html</ref> In parallel to his supervisory Board membership at the two banking houses, Asmussen was also a member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority ([[BaFin]]), an organization that is intended to prohibit banks from risky trading in securities. This led to the accusation of many critics that Asmussen had sat on supervisory bodies that controlled his own business.<ref>http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/degler-denkt-asmussens-rollenspiel-1.542284</ref><ref>https://taz.de/!5112237/</ref>
  
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On 1 July 2008, Jörg Asmussen was appointed State Secretary and replaced [[Thomas Mirow]]. Jörg Asmussen sat on the Steering Committee of the SoFFin Bank Rescue Fund, on the Board of Directors of the financial supervisory authority BaFin and on the ''Wirtschaftsfonds Deutschland'', which decides on corporate guarantees without parliamentary control.<ref>https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Schattenmann-unter-Beschuss-3381720.html</ref> He was also one of six members of the expert group "New Financial Market Architecture".<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20090618021333/http://de.reuters.com/article/idDELS45392720081028</ref> This body drafts proposals for new financial market rules (financial market regulations), which, among other things, aim to increase market transparency. Because of his role in the rescue of Hypo Real Estate, Asmussen had to testify before [[the Bundestag]]'s Investigative Committee in [[2009]]. The heads of the opposition factions ([[FDP]], [[Die Linke|Left]] and [[German Greens|Greens]]) accused him of having "grossly violated his duty of care", the FDP representative [[Volker Wissing]] demanded Asmussen's dismissal.<ref>https://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/banken-sorgfaltspflicht-groeblich-verletzt/1549130.html</ref> After the change of government in 2009, the new Finance Minister [[Wolfgang Schäuble]] (CDU) kept Asmussen in office and left him, among other things, the responsibility for the policy towards Greece during its financial crisis.[16]
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On 1 July 2008, Jörg Asmussen was appointed State Secretary and replaced [[Thomas Mirow]]. Jörg Asmussen sat on the Steering Committee of the SoFFin Bank Rescue Fund, on the Board of Directors of the financial supervisory authority BaFin and on the ''Wirtschaftsfonds Deutschland'', which decides on corporate guarantees without parliamentary control.<ref>https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Schattenmann-unter-Beschuss-3381720.html</ref> He was also one of six members of the expert group "New Financial Market Architecture".<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20090618021333/http://de.reuters.com/article/idDELS45392720081028</ref> This body drafts proposals for new financial market rules (financial market regulations), which, among other things, aim to increase market transparency. Because of his role in the rescue of Hypo Real Estate, Asmussen had to testify before [[the Bundestag]]'s Investigative Committee in [[2009]]. The heads of the opposition factions ([[FDP]], [[Die Linke|Left]] and [[German Greens|Greens]]) accused him of having "grossly violated his duty of care", the FDP representative [[Volker Wissing]] demanded Asmussen's dismissal.<ref>https://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/banken-sorgfaltspflicht-groeblich-verletzt/1549130.html</ref> After the change of government in 2009, the new Finance Minister [[Wolfgang Schäuble]] (CDU) kept Asmussen in office and left him, among other things, the responsibility for the policy towards Greece during its financial crisis.<ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/europas-schuldenkrise/portraet-joerg-asmussen-der-brandbekaempfer-1966178.html</ref>
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ECB Executive Board.
 
  
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===European Central Bank===
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==European Central Bank==
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On September 10, 2011, after the resignation of the former chief Economist of the European Central Bank, [[Jürgen Stark]], Federal Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble announced that the federal government would work to fill the post with Jörg Asmussen.<ref>http://www.n-tv.de/wirtschaft/Asmussen-soll-zur-EZB-article4268731.html</ref> The official appointment to the ECB Executive Board was made by the European Council in Brussels on 23 October 2011.<ref>http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ecofin/125499.pdf</ref> On January 1, 2012, he took up his term of office, which normally would have lasted eight years. Contrary to the original planning and the wishes of the German government, [[Peter Praet]] took over the position of Chief economist of the ECB,<ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/erstmals-kein-deutscher-belgier-peter-praet-wird-neuer-chefvolkswirt-der-ezb-11590144.html</ref> the Executive Board decided that Asmussen would retain the International Affairs Department.<ref>http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/0,1518,806987,00.html</ref>
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On September 10, 2011, after the resignation of the former chief Economist of the European Central Bank, [[Jürgen Stark]], Federal Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble announced that the federal government would work to fill the post with Jörg Asmussen.<ref>http://www.n-tv.de/wirtschaft/Asmussen-soll-zur-EZB-article4268731.html</ref> The official appointment to the ECB Executive Board was made by the [[European Council]] in [[Brussels]] on 23 October 2011.<ref>http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ecofin/125499.pdf</ref> On January 1, 2012, he took up his term of office, which normally would have lasted eight years. When, contrary to the original planning and the wishes of the German government, [[Peter Praet]] took over the position of Chief economist of the ECB,<ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/erstmals-kein-deutscher-belgier-peter-praet-wird-neuer-chefvolkswirt-der-ezb-11590144.html</ref> the Executive Board decided that Asmussen would retain the International Affairs Department.<ref>http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/0,1518,806987,00.html</ref>
  
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In August 2012, Asmussen took a different position than Bundesbank President [[Jens Weidmann]], stating that the new program for the purchase of government bonds was compatible with the ECB's mandate. "We are acting within our mandate, which is primarily aimed at guaranteeing price stability in the medium term for the entire euro area. Only a currency, the persistence of which there is no doubt, can be stable."<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20120822094357/http://www.fr-online.de/wirtschaft/ezb-direktor-asmussen-krisen-laender-muessen-probleme-angehen,1472780,16920556.html</ref> This policy of the ECB was controversial in connection with the non-assistance clause. In June 2013, Asmussen defended the OMT bond purchase program before the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20131002130852/http://cep.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/Pressemappe/CEP_in_den_Medien/CEP_in_den_Medien_2013/Sonstige_Artikel_2013/FAZ__Debatte_ueber_EU-Vertragsaenderung_14.06.2013.pdf</ref><ref>https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/key/date/2013/html/sp130611.de.html</ref>
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In August 2012, Asmussen took a different position than Bundesbank President [[Jens Weidmann]], stating that the new program for the purchase of government bonds was compatible with the ECB's mandate. "We are acting within our mandate, which is primarily aimed at guaranteeing price stability in the medium term for the entire euro area. Only a currency, the continued existence of which there is no doubt, can be stable."<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20120822094357/http://www.fr-online.de/wirtschaft/ezb-direktor-asmussen-krisen-laender-muessen-probleme-angehen,1472780,16920556.html</ref> This policy of the ECB was controversial in connection with the non-assistance clause. In June 2013, Asmussen defended the OMT bond purchase program before the [[Federal Constitutional Court]] in Karlsruhe.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20131002130852/http://cep.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/Pressemappe/CEP_in_den_Medien/CEP_in_den_Medien_2013/Sonstige_Artikel_2013/FAZ__Debatte_ueber_EU-Vertragsaenderung_14.06.2013.pdf</ref><ref>https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/key/date/2013/html/sp130611.de.html</ref>
  
 
==State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs==
 
==State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs==
 
After almost two years, at the request of [[Andrea Nahles]], he moved to the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in the Merkel III Cabinet as State Secretary. There, he was responsible for issues of old-age security, among other things, until the end of 2015.<ref>http://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/ezb-mann-asmussen-wird-staatssekretaer-bei-nahles-a-939202.html</ref><ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/kommentar-draghis-bester-mann-12712619.html</ref>
 
After almost two years, at the request of [[Andrea Nahles]], he moved to the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in the Merkel III Cabinet as State Secretary. There, he was responsible for issues of old-age security, among other things, until the end of 2015.<ref>http://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/ezb-mann-asmussen-wird-staatssekretaer-bei-nahles-a-939202.html</ref><ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/kommentar-draghis-bester-mann-12712619.html</ref>
  
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At the end of 2015, Asmussen aspired to a board position at the state development bank KfW. However, since he insisted on a place of work in [[Berlin]], while KfW's headquarters are in [[Frankfurt am Main]], his appointment failed. Meanwhile, the post of State Secretary in the Federal Social Ministry had already been assigned to the former Secretary General of the SPD, [[Yasmin Fahimi]]. Asmussen was then temporarily retired as a political official.<ref>http://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/wegen-wohnsitz-berlin-asmussen-geht-wohl-nicht-zur-kfw/12735536.html</ref>
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At the end of 2015, Asmussen aspired to a board position at the state development bank KfW. However, since he insisted on a place of work in [[Berlin]], while KfW's headquarters are in [[Frankfurt am Main]], his appointment failed. Meanwhile, the post of State Secretary in the Federal Social Ministry had already been assigned to the former Secretary General of the SPD, [[Yasmin Fahimi]]. Asmussen was then temporarily retired as an official.<ref>http://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/wegen-wohnsitz-berlin-asmussen-geht-wohl-nicht-zur-kfw/12735536.html</ref>
  
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==Switching to the private sector==
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==Switching to the financial industry==
 
At the end of March 2016, Asmussen became a member of the Supervisory Board of the British peer-to-peer lending platform [[Funding Circle]], which was founded in 2010.<ref>https://www.politik-kommunikation.de/personalwechsel/asmussen-wird-aufsichtsrat-bei-funding-circle-1757205925</ref>
 
At the end of March 2016, Asmussen became a member of the Supervisory Board of the British peer-to-peer lending platform [[Funding Circle]], which was founded in 2010.<ref>https://www.politik-kommunikation.de/personalwechsel/asmussen-wird-aufsichtsrat-bei-funding-circle-1757205925</ref>
  
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Grom September 1, [[2016]], Asmussen worked for the investment bank [[Lazard]], where he advises governments and the public sector as well as large companies in Europe.<ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/menschen-wirtschaft/ex-notenbanker-joerg-asmussen-heuert-bei-investmentbank-lazard-an-14328844.html</ref> In July 2018, he was appointed Head of Mergers and Acquisitions for Europe at the bank.<ref>https://www.fondsprofessionell.de/news/finanzprofis/headline/lazard-betraut-joerg-asmussen-mit-neuer-funktion-145394/</ref>
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From September 1, [[2016]], Asmussen worked for the investment bank [[Lazard]], where he advises governments and the public sector as well as large companies in Europe.<ref>http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/menschen-wirtschaft/ex-notenbanker-joerg-asmussen-heuert-bei-investmentbank-lazard-an-14328844.html</ref> In July 2018, he was appointed Head of Mergers and Acquisitions for Europe at the bank.<ref>https://www.fondsprofessionell.de/news/finanzprofis/headline/lazard-betraut-joerg-asmussen-mit-neuer-funktion-145394/</ref>
  
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He has been working for the [[Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft|German Insurance Association ]]<ref>https://www.gdv.de/de/medien/aktuell/asmussen-wird-fuerstenwerth-als-hauptgeschaeftsfuehrer-des-gdv-nachfolgen--55918</ref> since April [[2020]] and has been its Chief Executive Officer since October 1, 2020.<ref>https://www.handelsblatt.com/finanzen/anlagestrategie/trends/versicherer-joerg-asmussen-wird-neuer-gdv-hauptgeschaeftsfuehrer/25489988.html</ref>
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He has been working for the [[Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft|German Insurance Association]]<ref>https://www.gdv.de/de/medien/aktuell/asmussen-wird-fuerstenwerth-als-hauptgeschaeftsfuehrer-des-gdv-nachfolgen--55918</ref> since April [[2020]] and has been its Chief Executive Officer since October 1, 2020.<ref>https://www.handelsblatt.com/finanzen/anlagestrategie/trends/versicherer-joerg-asmussen-wird-neuer-gdv-hauptgeschaeftsfuehrer/25489988.html</ref>
  
 
==Personal life==
 
==Personal life==

Latest revision as of 01:27, 12 July 2024

Person.png Jörg Asmussen  Rdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
(economist)
Jörg Asmussen.jpg
Born31 October 1966
Flensburg, West Germany
NationalityGerman
Alma materUniversity of Giessen, University of Bonn, Bocconi University
Interests2008 Financial Crisis
PartySocial Democratic Party of Germany
Neoliberal German economist as civil servant who "deregulated" to allow for 2008 Financial Crisis, but didn't hurt his career. Attended the 2014 Bilderberg. Later Lazard Frères.

Employment.png 

In office
1 September 2016 - April 2020
EmployerLazard Frères
As civil servant "deregulated" to allow for 2008 Financial Crisis. Attended Bilderberg/2014

Employment.png Member of the Executive Board

In office
1 January 2012 - 27 January 2014
EmployerEuropean Central Bank
Attended Bilderberg/2014

Jörg Asmussen is a German economist and former ministerial official with close ties to the financial industry. He was State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Finance from 2008 to 2011, then a member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank until 2013, and then State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs until 2015. After that, he started working for Lazard Frères.

Jörg Asmussen attracted criticism as one of the leading financial managers of Germany. Throughout his career, there were multiple conflicts of interest.[1] As a supporter of the deregulation of financial markets and the purchase speculative asset-backed securities and financial derivatives, Asmussen was a one of the creators of the pre-2007 financial boom. When the crisis began in 2008 with the collapse of several banks, it was precisely the transactions with these highly complex or risky securities that were identified as the causes of the crash. To critics it was incomprehensible why Asmussen was appointed to the European Central Bank Executive Board and was supposed to manage the crisis which he himself helped to conjure up from a high governing position.[2]

Background

Asmussen's father was the head of the municipal fire department, his mother was a teacher. After graduating from the Goethe School in Flensburg, he studied economics in Giessen and Bonn from 1988 to 1994 (with Professor of International Economics Axel A. Weber, among others) and also received an MBA at the Milan University of Economics Luigi Bocconi. After completing his studies, he worked for two years as a project manager in the field of European Economic, Social and Labour market policy at the Institute for Social Research and Social Policy in Cologne.[3] Asmussen has been a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) since 1986, with a break between 2018 and 2020.[4]

Career in the Federal Ministry of Finance

In 1996, he began his career at the Federal Ministry of Finance under the then Finance Minister Theo Waigel (CSU) as a consultant for international financial and monetary policy. When Oskar Lafontaine (SPD) took over the Ministry of Finance after the change of government in 1998, he became the personal advisor to the new State Secretary Heiner Flassbeck. Flassbeck rated Asmussen's competence as "mediocre" and did not recommend Asmussen for high tasks.[5] After Oskar Lafontaine's resignation, the new minister Hans Eichel (SPD) made him head of his ministerial office. For a short time, Asmussen acted as a sub-department head in the Europe department.

In 2003, Federal Finance Minister Hans Eichel promoted Asmussen to Ministerial Director and appointed him Head of the Department for National and International Financial Market and Monetary Policy. At the age of 37, he was the youngest political official in a federal agency at the time.[6]

Encouraging financial speculation

According to Dieter Degler, True Sale International GmbH (TSI), a trading platform and lobbying association for the expansion of the German securitization market via asset-backed securities (ABS), was founded in 2003 under Asmussen's "spiritual patronage and active assistance".[7] He was subsequently a member of the Shareholders' Advisory Board of TSI on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Finance.

Asmussen convinced Eichel of the idea of making his former professor Axel Weber the new president of the Deutsche Bundesbank as the successor to Ernst Welteke, who resigned in April 2004.[8] In the government coalition agreement of the "Grand Coalition" of 2005, Asmussen advocated the inclusion of the points of reducing "superfluous regulations" and the "expansion of the securitization market" for the financial market.[9] Under Asmussen's name, an article entitled "Securitisations from the Point of view of the Ministry of Finance" was published in the Zeitschrift für das gesamte Kreditwesen (ZKW) in 2006, in which ABS was presented very positively. These financial products later turned out to be a major trigger of the international financial crisis from 2007 onwards.[10] However, Asmussen did not write the article himself, according to his own information, it was written by officials of the department.[11]

In his capacity as head of department and later State Secretary, Asmussen was a member of the Supervisory Board of Mittelstandsbank IKB and the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) as a representative of the federal government. As a member of the Supervisory Board of IKB, Asmussen campaigned to buy exactly those securities that brought IKB into difficulties in the summer of 2007 as a result of the crisis on the US subprime market. The state-owned development bank KfW then made billions available to save them.[12][13] In parallel to his supervisory Board membership at the two banking houses, Asmussen was also a member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), an organization that is intended to prohibit banks from risky trading in securities. This led to the accusation of many critics that Asmussen had sat on supervisory bodies that controlled his own business.[14][15]

On 1 July 2008, Jörg Asmussen was appointed State Secretary and replaced Thomas Mirow. Jörg Asmussen sat on the Steering Committee of the SoFFin Bank Rescue Fund, on the Board of Directors of the financial supervisory authority BaFin and on the Wirtschaftsfonds Deutschland, which decides on corporate guarantees without parliamentary control.[16] He was also one of six members of the expert group "New Financial Market Architecture".[17] This body drafts proposals for new financial market rules (financial market regulations), which, among other things, aim to increase market transparency. Because of his role in the rescue of Hypo Real Estate, Asmussen had to testify before the Bundestag's Investigative Committee in 2009. The heads of the opposition factions (FDP, Left and Greens) accused him of having "grossly violated his duty of care", the FDP representative Volker Wissing demanded Asmussen's dismissal.[18] After the change of government in 2009, the new Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble (CDU) kept Asmussen in office and left him, among other things, the responsibility for the policy towards Greece during its financial crisis.[19]

European Central Bank

On September 10, 2011, after the resignation of the former chief Economist of the European Central Bank, Jürgen Stark, Federal Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble announced that the federal government would work to fill the post with Jörg Asmussen.[20] The official appointment to the ECB Executive Board was made by the European Council in Brussels on 23 October 2011.[21] On January 1, 2012, he took up his term of office, which normally would have lasted eight years. When, contrary to the original planning and the wishes of the German government, Peter Praet took over the position of Chief economist of the ECB,[22] the Executive Board decided that Asmussen would retain the International Affairs Department.[23]

In August 2012, Asmussen took a different position than Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann, stating that the new program for the purchase of government bonds was compatible with the ECB's mandate. "We are acting within our mandate, which is primarily aimed at guaranteeing price stability in the medium term for the entire euro area. Only a currency, the continued existence of which there is no doubt, can be stable."[24] This policy of the ECB was controversial in connection with the non-assistance clause. In June 2013, Asmussen defended the OMT bond purchase program before the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe.[25][26]

State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs

After almost two years, at the request of Andrea Nahles, he moved to the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in the Merkel III Cabinet as State Secretary. There, he was responsible for issues of old-age security, among other things, until the end of 2015.[27][28]

At the end of 2015, Asmussen aspired to a board position at the state development bank KfW. However, since he insisted on a place of work in Berlin, while KfW's headquarters are in Frankfurt am Main, his appointment failed. Meanwhile, the post of State Secretary in the Federal Social Ministry had already been assigned to the former Secretary General of the SPD, Yasmin Fahimi. Asmussen was then temporarily retired as an official.[29]

Switching to the financial industry

At the end of March 2016, Asmussen became a member of the Supervisory Board of the British peer-to-peer lending platform Funding Circle, which was founded in 2010.[30]

From September 1, 2016, Asmussen worked for the investment bank Lazard, where he advises governments and the public sector as well as large companies in Europe.[31] In July 2018, he was appointed Head of Mergers and Acquisitions for Europe at the bank.[32]

He has been working for the German Insurance Association[33] since April 2020 and has been its Chief Executive Officer since October 1, 2020.[34]

Personal life

Asmussen's partner until 2016 was Henriette Peucker, who headed the Berlin representative office of the stock exchange Deutsche Börse from January 2003 to March 2010.[35] She has been working at a communications consultancy since April 2010.[36] Because of this relationship, he was accused of possible conflicts of interest and partiality.[37] Asmussen is the father of two daughters.


 

Events Participated in

EventStartEndLocation(s)Description
Bilderberg/201429 May 20141 June 2014Denmark
Copenhagen
Marriott Hotel		The 62nd Bilderberg, with 136 guests, held in Copenhagen
WEF/Annual Meeting/201323 January 201327 January 2013World Economic Forum
Switzerland		2500 mostly unelected leaders met to discuss "leading through adversity"
Many thanks to our Patrons who cover ~2/3 of our hosting bill. Please join them if you can.


References

  1. ↑ https://lobbypedia.de/wiki/J%C3%B6rg_Asmussen#Banker_und_Lobbyisten_im_Bundesfinanzministerium
  2. ↑ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/europas-schuldenkrise/portraet-joerg-asmussen-der-brandbekaempfer-1966178.html
  3. ↑ https://www.munzinger.de/document/00000026707
  4. ↑ https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/joerg-asmussen-die-spd-koennte-ihren-star-oekonomen-verlieren-1.3991995
  5. ↑ https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Schattenmann-unter-Beschuss-3381720.html
  6. ↑ https://www.cicero.de/wirtschaft/die-wirtschaftsbosse/39674
  7. ↑ http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/degler-denkt-asmussens-rollenspiel-1.542284
  8. ↑ https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Schattenmann-unter-Beschuss-3381720.html
  9. ↑ http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/0,1518,630396,00.html
  10. ↑ https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deutschland/joerg-asmussen-kuenftiger-ezb-chefvolkswirt-ist-gnadenlos-pragmatisch/4684568.html
  11. ↑ Mark Schieritz, Jana Simon: Jörg Asmussen: „Spaß ist privat“. In: Zeit-Magazin, Nr. 39/2013, 19. September 2013.
  12. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi6pQ9jK6PE
  13. ↑ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/debatten/europas-zukunft/peter-gauweiler-zur-zukunft-europas-wer-spart-geht-am-ende-leer-aus-11917052.html
  14. ↑ http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/degler-denkt-asmussens-rollenspiel-1.542284
  15. ↑ https://taz.de/!5112237/
  16. ↑ https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Schattenmann-unter-Beschuss-3381720.html
  17. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20090618021333/http://de.reuters.com/article/idDELS45392720081028
  18. ↑ https://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/banken-sorgfaltspflicht-groeblich-verletzt/1549130.html
  19. ↑ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/europas-schuldenkrise/portraet-joerg-asmussen-der-brandbekaempfer-1966178.html
  20. ↑ http://www.n-tv.de/wirtschaft/Asmussen-soll-zur-EZB-article4268731.html
  21. ↑ http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ecofin/125499.pdf
  22. ↑ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/erstmals-kein-deutscher-belgier-peter-praet-wird-neuer-chefvolkswirt-der-ezb-11590144.html
  23. ↑ http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/0,1518,806987,00.html
  24. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20120822094357/http://www.fr-online.de/wirtschaft/ezb-direktor-asmussen-krisen-laender-muessen-probleme-angehen,1472780,16920556.html
  25. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20131002130852/http://cep.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/Pressemappe/CEP_in_den_Medien/CEP_in_den_Medien_2013/Sonstige_Artikel_2013/FAZ__Debatte_ueber_EU-Vertragsaenderung_14.06.2013.pdf
  26. ↑ https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/key/date/2013/html/sp130611.de.html
  27. ↑ http://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/ezb-mann-asmussen-wird-staatssekretaer-bei-nahles-a-939202.html
  28. ↑ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/kommentar-draghis-bester-mann-12712619.html
  29. ↑ http://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/wegen-wohnsitz-berlin-asmussen-geht-wohl-nicht-zur-kfw/12735536.html
  30. ↑ https://www.politik-kommunikation.de/personalwechsel/asmussen-wird-aufsichtsrat-bei-funding-circle-1757205925
  31. ↑ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/menschen-wirtschaft/ex-notenbanker-joerg-asmussen-heuert-bei-investmentbank-lazard-an-14328844.html
  32. ↑ https://www.fondsprofessionell.de/news/finanzprofis/headline/lazard-betraut-joerg-asmussen-mit-neuer-funktion-145394/
  33. ↑ https://www.gdv.de/de/medien/aktuell/asmussen-wird-fuerstenwerth-als-hauptgeschaeftsfuehrer-des-gdv-nachfolgen--55918
  34. ↑ https://www.handelsblatt.com/finanzen/anlagestrategie/trends/versicherer-joerg-asmussen-wird-neuer-gdv-hauptgeschaeftsfuehrer/25489988.html
  35. ↑ https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article156934960/Asmussens-Liebe-scheiterte-trotz-Verzicht-auf-Top-Jobs.html
  36. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20111006174710/http://www.ftd.de/politik/deutschland/:portraet-joerg-asmussen-manager-mit-beamtenstatus/60102462.html
  37. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20100101183246/http://www.ftd.de/karriere-management/who-is-who/:eingeschraenkter-staatssekretaer-asmussen-bei-finanzaufsicht-befangen/526469.html
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