A new book, Nazi Billionaires, investigates how Germany’s richest business dynasties made fortunes by aiding and abetting Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich.
It also examines how, eight decades later, they still escape close scrutiny and a nation that has done so much to confront its catastrophic past still suffers a very particular blind spot.
“What struck me was this is a country that’s so cognisant of its history in many ways but seemingly the most economically powerful actors do not engage with that,” says author David de Jong, a 35-year-old Dutchman.
“That was the reason why I wrote the book. It’s an argument in favour of historical transparency.”
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/may/18/nazi-billionaires-book-hitler-bmw-porsche