Travel narrows the mind, say the cynics. Andreas von Buddenbrock, who is not the least bit cynical, is inclined to agree.
He was born in Cuba during one of many foreign postings for his father, a German diplomat, and he lived in Manila and Washington before his student years at the University of St Gallen, Switzerland. After a further year in transit at a Geneva private bank and a few months at JP Morgan in New York, he finally managed to settle in Frankfurt and would be pleased never to move house again.
As head of Merrill Lynch's German investment-banking division, Buddenbrock faces plenty of challenges on his own doorstep. He was recruited by Merrill Lynch from JP Morgan in 1994 but expansion was impossible for several years while Merrill's time and investment cash in Europe were absorbed by the integration of Smith New Court.
Dominant elsewhere but an also-ran in Germany, Merrill Lynch has now resolved to take the German market seriously. The firm hovers around 20th place in the German M&A league tables. Buddenbrock's brief is to develop long-term client relationships, to ascend to the heights alongside Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan and - with "a challenging budget" - to produce a profit within three to five years.