Germany: Led by Businessmen

When you ask who runs a country, the obvious answer is usually the head of state or government. But in Germany today, the real power lies with the ceos. Though often less visible than politicians—or their American corporate counterparts—Germany’s business leaders wield immense influence over the nation’s direction, and by extension, that of Europe and the world.

At a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on July 21, the most powerful business leaders of 61 companies pledged to revive Germany as a global investment hub with their “Made for Germany” initiative. To back their pledge, they announced €631 billion (us$743 billion) in investments over the next three years. This sum includes both planned and new capital investments.

The number itself is not all that impressive. Many have criticized it for being too small and fear momentum will be stifled by bureaucracy or derailed by an escalating trade war with the United States.

But do not underestimate the power of Germany’s business leaders, especially because the newly elected chancellor and several key ministers came straight from the corporate world.

Pulling the Strings

In the March 2022 Trumpet, editor in chief Gerald Flurry analyzed a critical statement by former German Chancellor Angela Merkel. According to Donald Tusk, former president of the European Council and current prime minister of Poland, Merkel admitted she opposed the Nord Stream pipelines that connected Germany to Russia but found herself “helpless” against pressure from German business leaders.

“On this issue, German business leaders had enough power to overrule the chancellor!” Mr. Flurry commented. “The people may vote for one thing, but if business leaders want something else, they win.“

At the time, there was a struggle between elected politicians and business leaders. Now business leaders have infiltrated the top of Germany’s government. For example:

• Merz previously headed the supervisory board of the German branch of the American investment bank BlackRock.
• Economic Minister Katherina Reiche served as ceo of Westenergie, a division of e.on, one of Europe’s largest energy companies.
• Digital Transformation and Government Modernization Minister Karsten Wildberger was the ceo of Ceconomy, parent company of consumer electronic companies MediaMarkt and Saturn.
• Culture and Media Commissioner Wolfram Weimer previously worked as a media entrepreneur.

The business leaders are optimistic that the government will more closely align with their needs, Deutsche Bank ceo Christian Sewing and Siemens ceo Roland Busch—cofounders of “Made for Germany”—told Handelsblatt.

“We now need to send a clear signal to society that something is happening here,” Sewing said. “As an alliance of many leading companies, we want to work closely with politicians to help put Germany, and thus Europe, on a growth path.”

“We need the courage to make structural changes in politics, and major steps must follow,” Busch added. “But we also need companies that believe in the location and are willing to invest. Both must come together quickly to build momentum.”

Since the end of World War ii, Germany has become the world’s largest creditor nation. No other country invests as heavily in foreign companies, factories and projects—or lends as much to foreign governments and enterprises—as Germany does. On one hand, this reflects the substantial financial resources available to German businesses. On the other, it highlights a reluctance to invest those resources within Germany itself. But this could change, signaling a dramatic new focus for Germany.

Troubling History and Prophecy

In “Rising From the German Underground,” Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry wrote:

Toward the end of World War ii, in August 1944, representatives of massive German companies like Krupp, Messerschmitt, Volkswagenwerk and Rheinmetall met with senior Nazis at the so-called Red House meeting. A U.S. intelligence document, declassified in 1996, says that these business leaders were told they must “prepare themselves to finance the Nazi Party, which would be forced to go underground ….”

By 1944, these leaders knew they would lose World War ii. So they were already planning for the next round! This document says, “Existing financial reserves in foreign countries must be placed at the disposal of the party so that a strong German empire can be created after the defeat.”

Few realize that the money of key industrialists funded Adolf Hitler’s rise, as David de Jong vividly shows in his 2022 book Nazi Billionaires. These industrialists pledged at the end of World War ii to go underground and ensure Germany would have the funds to rise again.

While it is understandable for Germany’s business leaders to want Germany to prosper, history shows how these ambitions can suddenly turn violent. Revelation 17 and 18 prophesy that the Nazi regime of World War ii will be revived in a soon-coming European empire of 10 nations or groups of nations.

The late Herbert W. Armstrong wrote in the August 1959 Plain Truth that this coming conglomerate of nations “is merely the continuation of the ancient Babylonish system—a union of politics and religion and great economic cartels whose purpose is to rule the world!”

These “great economic cartels” are now seeking to revive Germany’s strength. Germany is prophesied to become an economic behemoth. Revelation 18:3 reads: “[T]he merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.” A parallel prophecy in Isaiah reveals that Europe is prophesied to become the “marketplace for the nations” (Isaiah 23:3; New King James Version).

While some analysts today believe German businessmen will be pulverized in coming trade wars, the Bible reveals that they will forge alliances to bring down the U.S. As Mr. Flurry explained in “Building Toward a World Catastrophe,” Isaiah 23 discusses an alliance between Asia and Europe to besiege the American superpower.

Isaiah 23:8 asks: “Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth?”

“The spiritual center of the Holy Roman Empire is called Babylon in your Bible (Revelation 17:5; 18:1-3),” Mr. Flurry explained. “But here in Isaiah, the Bible refers to Tyre (and its allies Zidon, etc) as the commercial center of this European power. By understanding the spiritual and the commercial powers, you can understand what a colossus is rising in Europe. … Businessmen of the Holy Roman Empire are becoming the honorable of the Earth (Revelation 18:3).”

We are witnessing the fulfillment of key Bible prophecies. Read chapter 7 of Mr. Flurry’s book Isaiah’s End-Time Vision to see God’s hands in these world events.