Friedrich Karl Flick

Who was Friedrich Karl Flick?

Friedrich Karl Flick was a German-Austrian industrialist and billionaire.

He was born the youngest of the sons of Friedrich Flick and Marie Schuss. After his studies, he worked in his father's company. In 1972, when his father died, he inherited the major part of the family business.

As the sole owner of the Friedrich Flick Industrial Holding, he had interests in major companies including Daimler-Benz, WR Grace, Gerling Insurance, Buderus, Dynamit Nobel, Feldmühle and others.

In 1975 he sold his part of Daimler-Benz to the Deutsche Bank for more than $ 1 billion. Major tax liabilities were avoided through "cultivation of the political landscape",—a process that turned into the Flick Affair in 1983 when it became apparent that about $25 million had been paid to German political parties in return for tax cuts and favorable rulings. Although Chancellor Helmut Kohl benefited from the dealings, he claimed he had "no recollections", while others resigned from their posts. In 1985 Flick sold off the remainder of his companies. When Deutsche Bank announced that it had bought his holdings for about $3 billion German marks, Flick retired in Austria, where he became a naturalised citizen.