There are some people that I have met in person and admire in some degree, but one figure that always had tremendous impact on me is definitely the imposing Cretan Minos Zombanakis. Minos achieved the status of a true legend in the global banking scene, but that was not enough to catch my full attention. Minos Zombanakis among many other achievements, is the father of Libor in the financial community. I asked myself if it is possible for a banker to despise ill-gotten wealth in an era when morals and good manners are nonexistent. Is it possible for a man to be human and genuine in our days, when people cannot even communicate, because the monitors they stare at all day and night have made interaction impossible? My answer in these two questions is definitely yes.
His personal story is indeed an amazing
adventure. Minos was born in 1926 in a small village called Kalives and he grew up in a 2nd world war Greece, and back then life in Crete was hard even for a living. The only Greek territory
remaining free by May 1941 was the large and strategically important island of
Crete which was held by a strong allied garrison. Crete was of course a
strategic area, close to North Africa so it was a matter of time to become a bloody battleground. Conditions in Athens were very bad too. That was a very tough starting point, for one man’s life through
war, violence and hunger in the streets. Even though Minos was a young schoolboy, through his books and insightful observations managed to make his way out and see the big picture too early.
In a world out of control, he had his own plans for the future. During war, the Governor of the Bank of Greece followed the Greek Government into exile.
In 1948 the
Marshall plan (officially the European Recovery Plan) got into full swing in
Greece, headed by Paul Porter. Minos had already gained experience
participating in high level discussions between the US and Greek governments
and he became an assistant Executive Director in the Bank of Greece, managing
foreign exchange reserves and battling inflation in these desperate times.
But further
studies were needed for someone who wanted to make a difference in his field.
Back then in Kalives, Minos met a man who
came back from Cambridge in the United States to his village in Crete. This man
told Minos with pride that he was a waiter at Harvard – in the days when
servants polished the students’ shoes, and urged Minos to consider himself as a
Harvard boy.
Minos made
his way to the United States; he went at the Harvard gates in order to challenge
his own strengths, soon to realize how different life was in the US at that
time. But there was a slight problem when he arrived. He could not be accepted
because he didn't had a degree. After
this huge disappointment a friend advised him to insist as much as possible and
audit a few courses. After tremendous effort from the side of Minos, he was accepted to just audit the courses. But Minos was
enthusiastic, smart and a fast learner, catching the attention of his professors. The board allowed him to
give the exams, where he excelled. After this important step and the support of
Dean Mason he was fully enrolled, able to sit for a Masters Degree at the age
of 30, one of the youngest in class. After completing his studies at Harvard he
went to New York to work for a Greek ship owner.
His journey
to the global markets took off from that point. Through the markets of Europe,
United States, Middle East and Japan Minos literally changed the financial
markets with his innovations. As David Lascelles beautifully presents in his book, Minos
opened up a whole new era in international finance, without even being a
product of the dominant Anglo-Saxon financial establishment, or even of the new
wave of Central European Jewish bankers.
A few years
ago, the first time I met Minos I was in a personal turning point, a period of
a great challenge in my life. I can remember I was so stressful,
I thought I lost my nerve forever. A difficult
period of time that maybe many of us went through at some point in our life.
When I saw his tall figure, I thought I knew him
forever. I instantly understood that he is a warm person, his mind is enormously
sharp, an intellectually curious man that you know you can’t go wrong when you
seek for the right advice at the right time.
