Chalongphob Sussangkarn took over as Thailand’s minister of finance in March, following the resignation of his predecessor Pridiyathorn Devakula. A former president of independent economic think-tank the Thailand Development Research Institute, he is a key player in the interim government that was installed last year after a military coup. He spoke to Simon Montlake in Bangkok.
In the debate on whether German Landesbanken should consolidate further, Hannes Rehm is Siegfried Jaschinski’s ideological opponent. While he does not rule out further consolidation in the sector, Mr Rehm, who has a PhD in economics, sees no pressing need for it, arguing that the three-pillar system has adequately financed corporate Germany.