Michael von Clemm

Memorial at Canary Wharf Dr Michael von Clemm (1935–1997) was an American businessman, restaurateur, anthropologist and president of Templeton College, Oxford. Von Clemm was a leading banker in the Eurobond market, but also helped start the restaurant revolution of the 1980s in the UK, and was one of the original father of the Canary Wharf development. Von Clemm helped found the London Eurodollar market, saving London's position as a global financial centre. He also made a huge impact in his work for charity and the English Speaking Union.

Early life and education Von Clemm was born in Long Island, New York, on March 18, 1935, the son of Werner von Clemm, a prominent German-American banker who was convicted of smuggling the diamonds of Holocaust victims, and grandson of a former Citibank vice-president.

Von Clemm was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy (class of 1953) and Harvard University (anthropology), where he met his wife Louisa B. Hunnewell of Wellesley, MA. The couple left the US at the end of the 1950s to study, and Michael took a postgraduate course in anthropology at Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he was awarded his Doctorate. As part of his studies, Von Clemm lived with the Wachagga tribe in Tanzania for 14 months.

In 1971, Yassukovich hired Von Clemm to join White Weld, first as a temporary consultant on the feasibility of a Euro-commercial paper market, which did not catch on. However, in 1972 Von Clemm effectively gave up his academic career to concentrate full-time on banking. He had an aggressive style – for example on one occasion printing up T-shirts for staff which read Buy Bonds. He was also said to effectively bully clients into taking on the bank.

When Credit Suisse took a 40% stake in White Weld, Von Clemm rose rapidly to become a senior Director of the Credit Suisse White Weld joint venture. However, Merrill Lynch made a bid to acquire White Weld in 1978 and Credit Suisse needed a new partner. The existing Chairman Sir John Craven wanted Dillon Read (later Warburg Dillon Read). Von Clemm went behind his back and did a direct deal with First Boston, prompting Craven's resignation.

Von Clemm replaced Craven as chairman of the newly formed Credit Suisse First Boston, and then additionally chief executive in 1979. Although often controversial in his decisions, and taking several large risks, he turned CSFB from a relatively staid bank to a global powerhouse, propelling it into the top leagues of global banking. He stepped away from his chief executive role in 1983 but remained chairman until resigning in January 1986.

Von Clemm was known for his enormous expense claims and dramatic personal style. He was a regular – practically weekly – user of Concorde – and counted some of the world's most powerful figures as his friends. However, he also made large profits for his bank and was regarded as one of the biggest rain-makers in the City of London.

Roux Brothers In 1967, Von Clemm borrowed $900 to help two young French brothers, Michel and Albert Roux, start a restaurant business. He was looking for a site for a food processing plant,

Death and memorial Von Clemm died in 1997, at age 62, in Wellesley, Massachusetts, from a brain tumour. His friend Sir Richard Branson said at the time that Von Clemm's doctors believed it was due to excessive mobile phone use – Von Clemm had been an early adopter of the technology and was a constant user of his mobile. After Von Clemm's death, the Michael Von Clemm Foundation continued his interests. Among other things, the Foundation supports a Fellowship at Harvard University for final year Oxford University students, and a Fellowship at Oxford for Harvard students. There is a relief sculpture of Michael Von Clemm in Cabot Square at Canary Wharf, sculpted by Gerald Laing and unveiled by Eddie George in 1998 to commemorate his involvement in the Canary Wharf scheme.