Gerhard Schröder: The former Chancellor’s fortune

How rich is Gerhard Schröder?

Gerhard Schröder has made a good career outside of his life as Federal Chancellor and has now built up a considerable fortune. The ex-politician is likely to owe this primarily to his work as a lawyer and business lobbyist. Even as Chancellor, Schröder certainly did not deserve badly. He is said to have received around 8,300 euros per month, while Angela Merkel’s monthly salary is 35,572 euros. Since the death of Helmut Kohl in 2017, Gerhard Schröder has had a very special position. He is the last former Federal Chancellor who is currently still alive. The cherished Gerhard Schröder’s assets are 20 million euros.

Salary of the former Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schröder

As Federal Chancellor, Schröder left his mark on Germany from 1998 to 2005. His style of government was shaped, among other things, by his cooperation with many commissions and bodies. With the help of commissions such as the National Ethics Council, the Alliance for Labor and the Weizsäcker Commission, the ex-Chancellor certainly wanted to gain a better standing and ensure broader acceptance of his proposals in the Bundestag. To For seven years as Federal Chancellor and eight years as Prime Minister in Lower Saxony, Schröder receives a monthly pension of around 8,700 euros. (Payments included.)

In addition to his retirement, Schröder is also allowed to run an office including staff at government expense. This has cost taxpayers over 500,000 euros a year in recent years. These privileges are to be restricted in the future due to many criticisms.

Since his retirement as a politician, there has been a lot of criticism for one of the leading men in Germany. This is due, among other things, to that many critics classify its economic activities as lobbying. A few days after handing over the political scepter to his successor Angela Merkel, the newly minted ex-Chancellor committed himself to Ringier AG to serve as an advisor on “questions of international politics”.

Schröder earns a lot of money after his political exit

Despite his resignation as Federal Chancellor, Gerhard Schröder did not have to worry financially. After all, Manager Magazin reported that the former politician was responsible for his role as chairman of the shareholders’ committee at Nord Stream AG. His salary is said to have been 250,000 euros. Whether as an ombudsman, speaker or advisor, this man knows how to increase his wealth in a wide variety of roles and has already appeared as follows:

• Adviser to the Libyan Investment Authority
• Advisor roller at Rothschild Bank from 2006 to 2016
• Ombudsman at Continental 2008
• Arbitrator between Deutsche Bahn and Transnet in 2006

While the once leading politician in Germany has consistently ruled out a political comeback since 2012, there is the possibility of booking the shrewd businessman for a lot of money. Various agencies have taken on Schröder’s mediation for this role, as a speaker, he should estimate prices between 50,000 and 75,000 euros for a single appearance. Despite the many criticisms, Schröder is also committed to a good cause. Gerhard Schröder sits on the supervisory board of the Russian energy giant Rosneft. He should receive an annual salary of around 600,000 euros for this. The EU has imposed sanctions on Rosneft for Russia’s behavior in the 2014 Ukraine conflict. But it is no secret that Gerhard Schröder has good relations with Vladimir Putin.

Good purpose

The former chancellor is not only allowed to call himself the honorary chairman of the Near and Middle East Association. He has been a member of the Public Services, Transport and Traffic Union since 1973. The current businessman has the patronage of the initiative for people with ALS as well as that of the Aladdin project of the Fondation pour la Mémoire de la Shoah. Through his collaboration with the association Show your face! In addition, the political giant makes itself strong against right-wing extremism. Accordingly, he knows Ex-Chancellor to use his level of fame not only for his own purposes, but also for a good cause.

Image sources:
Cover picture: Tim Reckmann / Flickr [CC-BY 2.0]
Olaf Kosinsky [CC BY-SA 3.0 de], via Wikimedia Commons