List of German finance ministers

Last updated

Minister of Finance
Finanzminister
Bundesadler Bundesorgane.svg
Flag of Germany (state).svg
Wahlkampf Landtagswahl NRW 2022 - SPD - Roncalliplatz Koln 2022-05-13-4265 Crop.jpg
Incumbent
Lars Klingbeil
since 6 May 2025
Federal Ministry of Finance
Member of Federal Cabinet
AppointerThe chancellor
Formation1880
First holder Adolf von Scholz

The minister of finance of Germany (German : Finanzminister) is the head of the Federal Ministry of Finance and a member of the Federal Cabinet.

Contents

State secretaries for finance of the German Empire (1880–1918)

Ministers of finance (1918–1945)

No.PortraitName
(born and died)
TermPolitical partyGovernment
Took officeLeft officeTime in office
1
Eugen Schiffer (1919).jpg
Eugen Schiffer
(1860–1954)
13 February 191919 April 191965 days DDP Scheidemann
2
Bundesarchiv Bild 102-12088, Bernhard Dernburg (cropped).jpg
Bernhard Dernburg
(1865–1937)
19 April 191920 June 191962 days DDP Scheidemann
3
Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1989-072-16, Matthias Erzberger.jpg
Matthias Erzberger
(1875–1921)
21 June 191912 March 1920265 days Centre Bauer
4
Bundesarchiv Bild 146III-105, Joseph Wirth.jpg
Joseph Wirth
(1879–1956)
27 March 192022 October 19211 year, 209 days Centre Müller I
Fehrenbach
Wirth I
5
Fotothek df pk 0000079 059 (cropped).jpg
Andreas Hermes
(1878–1964)
26 October 192113 August 19231 year, 291 days Centre Wirth II
Cuno
6
Rudolf Hilferding and Gattin, cropped.jpg
Rudolf Hilferding
(1877–1941)
13 August 19231 October 192349 days SPD Stresemann I
7
Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1969-008A-07, Hans Luther.jpg
Hans Luther
(1879–1962)
6 October 192315 December 19241 year, 70 days Independent Stresemann II
Marx III
8
Bundesarchiv Bild 102-02063, Reichskabinett Luther I - Otto von Schlieben (cropped).jpg
Otto von Schlieben  [ de ]
(1875–1932)
19 January 192526 October 1925280 days DNVP Luther I
Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1969-008A-07, Hans Luther.jpg
Hans Luther
(1879–1962)
Acting
26 October 192520 January 192686 days Independent Luther I
9
No image.png
Peter Reinhold
(1887–1955)
20 January 192629 January 19271 year, 9 days DDP Luther II
Marx III
10
Bundesarchiv Bild 102-05710, Franz Heinrich Kohler.jpg
Heinrich Köhler
(1878–1949)
29 January 192729 June 19281 year, 152 days Centre Marx IV
(6)
Rudolf Hilferding and Gattin, cropped.jpg
Rudolf Hilferding
(1877–1941)
29 June 192821 December 19291 year, 175 days SPD Müller II
11
MoldenhauerPaul1920.jpg
Paul Moldenhauer
(1876–1947)
23 December 192920 June 1930179 days DVP Müller II
Brüning I
Bundesarchiv Bild 119-2600, Heinrich Bruning.jpg
Heinrich Brüning
(1885–1970)
Acting
20 June 193026 June 19306 days Centre Brüning I
12
Bundesarchiv Bild 102-10015, Robert Hermann Dietrich (cropped).jpg
Hermann Dietrich
(1879–1954)
26 June 19301 June 19321 year, 341 days DStP Brüning III
13
Ludwig Schwerin von Krosigk.jpg
Lutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk
(1887–1977)
(Independent until 1937)
1 June 193223 May 194512 years, 356 days NSDAP Papen
Schleicher
Hitler
Goebbels
Schwerin von Krosigk

Ministers of finance of the German Democratic Republic (1949–1990)

No.PortraitName
(born and died)
TermPolitical partyGovernment
Took officeLeft officeTime in office
1
Bundesarchiv Bild 183-09979-0003, Hans Loch.jpg
Hans Loch
(1898–1960)
11 October 194926 November 19556 years, 46 days LDPD Provisional government
Council of Ministers
(1950–1954)
(1954–1958)
2
Bundesarchiv Bild 183-91852-0010, Berlin, 22. Volkskammersitzung.jpg
Willy Rumpf
(1903–1982)
26 November 195512 December 196611 years, 16 days SED Council of Ministers
(1954–1958)
(1958–1963)
(1963–1967)
3
Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J0416-0030-001, Berlin, 24. DDR-Staatsratsitzung.jpg
Siegfried Böhm
(1928–1980)
12 December 19665 May 198013 years, 145 days SED Council of Ministers
(1963–1967)
(1967–1971)
(1971–1976)
(1976–1981)
4
No image.png
Werner Schmieder
(born 1926)
5 May 198026 June 19811 year, 52 days SED Council of Ministers
(1976–1981)
5
Bundesarchiv Bild 183-1987-0626-021, Ernst Hofner.jpg
Ernst Höfner
(1929–2009)
26 June 19817 November 19898 years, 134 days SED Council of Ministers
(1981–1986)
(1986-1989)
6
No image.png
Uta Nickel
(born 1941)
18 November 198912 April 1990145 days SED Modrow
7
Bundesarchiv Bild 183-1990-0215-306, Dr. Walter Romberg.jpg
Walter Romberg
(1928–2014)
12 April 199016 August 1990126 days SPD de Maizière
No image.png
Werner Skowron  [ de ]
(1943–2016)
Acting
16 August 19902 October 199047 days CDU de Maizière

Ministers of finance of the Federal Republic of Germany (1949–present)

Political party:   CSU    CDU    FDP    SPD

Name
(born and died)
PartyTerm of office Chancellor
(Cabinet)
1 Fritz Schäffer
(1888–1967)
CSU 20 September 194929 October 1957 Adenauer
(I • II)
2 Franz Etzel
(1902–1970)
CDU 29 October 195714 November 1961 Adenauer
(III)
3 Heinz Starke
(1911–2001)
FDP 14 November 196119 November 1962 Adenauer
(IV)
4 Rolf Dahlgrün
(1908–1969)
FDP14 December 196228 October 1966 Adenauer (V)
Erhard (I • II)
5 Kurt Schmücker
(1919–1996)
CDU8 November 196630 November 1966 Erhard
(II)
6 Franz Josef Strauß
(1915–1988)
CSU1 December 196621 October 1969 Kiesinger
(I)
7 Alex Möller
(1903–1985)
SPD 22 October 196913 May 1971 Brandt
(I)
8 Karl Schiller
(1911–1994)
SPD13 May 19717 July 1972
9 Helmut Schmidt
(1918–2015)
SPD7 July 19721 May 1974 Brandt
(III)
10 Hans Apel
(1932–2011)
SPD16 May 197415 February 1978 Schmidt
(I • II)
11 Hans Matthöfer
(1925–2009)
SPD16 February 197828 April 1982 Schmidt
(II • III)
12 Manfred Lahnstein
(b. 1937)
SPD28 April 19821 October 1982 Schmidt
(III)
13 Gerhard Stoltenberg
(1928–2001)
CDU4 October 198221 April 1989 Kohl
(IIIIII)
14 Theodor Waigel
(b. 1939)
CSU21 April 198927 October 1998 Kohl
(IIIIVV)
15 Oskar Lafontaine
(b. 1943)
SPD27 October 199818 March 1999 Schröder
(I)
16 Hans Eichel
(b. 1941)
SPD12 April 199922 November 2005 Schröder
(III)
17 Peer Steinbrück
(b. 1947)
SPD22 November 200528 October 2009 Merkel
(I)
18 Wolfgang Schäuble
(1942–2023)
CDU28 October 200924 October 2017 Merkel
(IIIII)
Peter Altmaier (acting)
(b. 1958)
CDU24 October 201714 March 2018 Merkel
(III)
19 Olaf Scholz
(b. 1958)
SPD14 March 20188 December 2021 Merkel
(IV)
20 Christian Lindner
(b. 1979)
FDP8 December 20217 November 2024 Scholz
(I)
21 Jörg Kukies
(b. 1968)
SPD7 November 20246 May 2025 Scholz
(I)
22 Lars Klingbeil
(b. 1978)
SPD6 May 2025incumbent Merz
(I)

See also