Herstatt Bank significant person Hans Gerling
Background
Herstatt Bank was founded in 1955 by Ivan David Herstatt, with financial assistance from Herbert Quandt, Emil Bührle and Hans Gerling, the head of an insurance company who took a majority share.  By 1974 the bank had assets of over DM2 billion, making it the 35th largest bank in Germany. Herstatt Bank became a significant participant in the foreign exchange markets. During 1973 and 1974, the U.S. dollar experienced significant volatility. The bank made wrong bets on the direction of the dollar, and by June 1974 had accumulated DM470 million in losses, compared with capital of only DM44 million.