He is the man they said would always remain in the shadow of Alfred Herrhausen, but they were wrong. Hilmar Kopper, speaker of the managing board of Deutsche Bank, is on the way to becoming a giant in world banking in his own right – a name to rival Abs, Ulrich, Guth and Christians. In the first full interview he has given since becoming speaker, he speaks to Padraic Fallon.

The merger between Manufacturers Hanover and Chemical defied conventional wisdom.

When Bayer's $200 million financing hit the Eurobond market in the second week of January it met a guarded welcome. The scarcity value of German corporate paper combined with the weight of lead manager Deutsche Bank seemed to ensure a smooth path for the issue. But was this the time, given the reluctance of investors, to spring such a deal?