Quick Facts
Biography
Wolf Klinz (born 13 September 1941 in Vienna) is a former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) with the Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP), part of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE).
Wolf Klinz was Chairman of the Special Committee on the Financial, Economic and Social Crisis (CRIS), he sat on the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) and he was a substitute for the Committee on Development (DEVE). He was the Vice-Chairman for the Delegation for relations with Canada and a member of the Delegation for relations with the countries of Southeast Asia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). In 2009 he replaced Peter Skinner as Chair of the steering committee of the European Parliamentary Financial Services Forum, a platform "promoting effective dialogue between the financial industry and MEPs
and contributing to a greater understanding of financial services issues".
Education and career
Wolf Klinz studied economics and business administration in Paris, Madrid, Berlin and Vienna. He graduated with an M.Com in 1963 from the Hochschule für Welthandel (now Vienna University of Economics and Business), a PhD in 1965, and an MBA from INSEAD, Fontainebleau, in 1966.
Wolf Klinz was a Partner with McKinsey & Company in the United Kingdom, Germany and France. Subsequently he served as a Member of the Executive Board of a Swiss Corporation. After German reunification he joined for the Executive Board of Treuhandanstalt, the German Government's agency for privatisation of the former East German industry. He finished his business career as CEO of a large German corporation in 2003 when he decided to go into European politics. From 2000 to 2004, he held the (honorary) position of President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) Frankfurt am Main. From 2003 to 2004 he was the Vice-President of Eurochambres in Brussels.
Decorations
Wolf Klinz received the Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Medal of the University Frankfurt am Main and the Medal of Honour of the IHK Frankfurt am Main. He received the Grand Decoration of Honour in Silver for Services to the Republic of Austria in 2005. In 2009 he received the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.