DMA member Bert von Stuelpnagel will speak about the Marshall Plan and its effect on West Germany. This important initiative of the Truman administration, led by Secretary of State George C. Marshall, made America a “European Power,” and its impact can still be felt today, especially in Germany. In 1953, Marshall was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in recognition of the economic rehabilitation of Europe after the war.
Of the 17 countries that benefited from the European Recovery Program, none was more fortunate to receive financial aid than the former enemy of the Allies. For Germany, the ERP stands for reentry into the Family of Nations, the beginning of the Social Market Economy, membership in the European organizations which soon followed, and the lasting economic progress of the Wirtschaftswunder (Economic Miracle). The currency reform and the Berlin Airlift of 1948, the outbreak of the Cold War and the descent of the Iron Curtain make this perhaps the most pivotal moment of the 20th Century. Throw into the mix the foundation of NATO in 1949 and Germany’s admittance to NATO in 1955, only 10 years after Hitler, and you can draw lessons from that time that may help you to understand current events. Accordingly, Bert thinks that now, at its 75th anniversary, the Marshall Plan is well worth an examination by the DMA.
Bert von Stuelpnagel was born in Freiburg, Germany, on March 6, 1950 and graduated from Bad Toelz High School in 1969. After military service and training in banking he worked in the financial industry during his entire career, including 35 years at the New York Branch of BayernLB, a German public sector bank. He retired in 2015 from his last position at that bank as Executive Vice President U.S. Capital Markets. He holds a Master in Political Sciences from State University of Bavaria, and an M.B.A. in Finance from Pace University.
Video presentation: The Marshall Plan