Michael von Clemm was a visionary of the Euromarkets. He was also a friend of anyone who saw, in the derisory little offshore Eurodollar markets of the 1960s, the forerunner of the mighty international capital markets we work in today. He saw many things clearly that others could not, and he probably lived the most exciting and interesting life of any investment banker of modern time as a result.
With Rainer Gut, he created Credit Suisse First Boston which dominated the Eurobond markets while he ran it. To do so, he convinced Gut that he should buy a special bracket firm in the US, instead of the less risky choice of Dillon Read. He originated (a carefully chosen verb for an investment banker's actions) Canary Wharf and called me from his car phone to say: "Fallon, guess where I'm calling from." The usual guesswork followed; then with his customary tone of drama he announced: "The Isle of Dogs. You think I'm looking at a bunch of derelict warehouses. I know I'm looking at the world's next financial centre."
He invented the Eurodollar certificate of deposit on May 1 1966. That may seem relatively minor now, yet it was one of the main foundation stones of the international capital markets.