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Benko complained about employees: Money doesn't flow out of the socket

René Benko, as chairman of Signa's advisory board, fared much better financially than ordinary advisory board members like Alfred Gusenbauer. In 2021, Benko felt ripped off by expensive employees and wanted to make a clean slate.

Translated from German Read in German

Kai Viehof, a self-made millionaire, is defying the stereotypical millionaire's image. Standing at the ARD talk show "Hart aber fair," Viehof appeared reserved compared to his counterpart, another wealthy electrical engineering entrepreneur. Viehof's grandfather built the "Allkauf" retail chain in the 1960s and sold it to Metro AG for around one billion marks in 1998.

He chose to forgo his share of the inheritance, which would have been a substantial sum. At 44 years old, Viehof is one of a new breed of millionaires who aim to distribute their wealth rather than accumulate more. Many other millionaires, like Sebastian Klein and Marlene Engelhorn, joined him in this movement. With over half of private wealth in Germany coming from inheritance or gifts, Germany has more super-rich individuals than the USA and China combined.

Despite his reserved demeanor, Viehof decided to speak out about the issue of wealth distribution. He believes that questions about fairness should be directed towards those who have gained their wealth through the system. Viehof pledged to donate or invest a significant portion of his inheritance in socially beneficial companies.

He learned about taxes and worked in the field briefly but is now focused on spending money wisely. Inspired by his family's history and motivated by concerns about the next generation, Viehof chose to donate a majority of his wealth. He is trying to promote democracy through his charitable investments, emphasizing that without democracy, there can be no true wealth distribution.

Written by urgent.news from Handelsblatt's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.

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