“Only together are we strong”

Frankfurt School kicked off the new year with friends and donors from industry, politics and society, including numerous alumni.

Frankfurt School forms a real community

Rainer Neske, Chairman of the FS Board of Trustees and Chairman of the Board of Management of Landesbank Baden-Württemberg, opened the New Year's reception and outlined Frankfurt School's outstanding development. He referred to the excellent results in national and international rankings and mentioned in particular the WirtschaftsWoche ranking, in which FS was once again recognised as the best private business school for business administration. This proves the popularity of the graduates on the labour market. In addition to excellent research and teaching, it is above all the strong community that characterises Frankfurt School. It brings together decision-makers from industry, politics and society with academics, students and alumni and addresses pressing, relevant issues. These talks and discussions are always a win-win situation for everyone involved. He recalled the many high-calibre events in 2024, including the award of an honorary doctorate to US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen and the symposium on the occasion Klaus Peter Müller's 80th birthday.

Startup Factory and new degree programmes

Professor Nils Stieglitz, President at Frankfurt School, spoke confidently about Frankfurt School's plans. The expansion of the Startup Factory at Bertramshof, the introduction of the new Master's programmes in Real Estate and Financial Technologies and the further development of the Blockchain Center are key. He thanked all friends for their support and funding and encouraged them to continue to accompany Frankfurt School, because “only together are we strong”.

Professor Co-Pierre Georg, Head of the Frankfurt School Blockchain Centre (FSBC), gave a keynote speech on the “Infrastructure of the new world”. He emphasised the transformative role of technology and warned against stylising it as a neutral instrument for its users. The development and use of technology is permanently characterised by social processes. In addition, changing societies must increasingly think about new power structures and the protection of informational self-determination. Against this backdrop, blockchain could continue to play a decisive role, especially as a kind of “memory for digital property rights”’. The FSBC's task is to create an environment in which new technologies are not only utilised, but actively shaped.