The hunt for the assets of the former East Germany’s ruling party has the hallmarks of a thriller. There are dubious characters, bags of cash, and key witnesses who suddenly die. At its heart is the question: How do you stash away 6 billion marks?
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, with the Cold War over and German reunification on the horizon, lawyer and politician Gregor Gysi inherited a fortune worth billions. Hardly anyone knew about the wealth of East Germany’s ruling party, the SED. Gysi became the revamped party’s new chairman, and little by little, he became aware of how the SED had enriched itself over 40 years of misgoverning. The party assets still belonged to the SED and its successor party, but it was unclear how long that would remain the case. East Germany was undergoing massive changes, with the first free democratic elections imminent. How could this enormous wealth be secured? In December 1989, transactions of incredible proportions started being made. Domestic and foreign currency, as well as other assets, were distributed to old party cadres. There were suitcases and bags full of cash. Loans were handed out to party comrades, sometimes amounting to millions. In later years, international investigators would implicate numerous businesspeople, and even an Islamic religious group. In particular, the Austrian Rudolfine Steindling played a key role in covering up traces of the money in her role as trustee of a company linked to the SED.
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