KfW

The KfW, formerly KfW Bankengruppe, is a German government-owned development bank, based in Frankfurt. Its name originally comes from Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau. It was formed in 1948 after World War II as part of the Marshall Plan. It is owned by the Federal Republic of Germany and the States of Germany. It is led by a five-member Managing Board headed by Ulrich Schröder, which in turn reports to a 37-member Supervisory Board. The chair of the Supervisory Board changes annually between the German Federal Ministers of Finance and Economic Affairs; the chairman for 2014 is Sigmar Gabriel.