Heinz Hermann Thiele

Thiele was born in Germany.[2] He earned a master's degree in law (LLM), from the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.[2]

Thiele began to work for Knorr-Bremse in 1969 as a patent lawyer. He joined the company's executive board (Vorstand) in 1985. That year, when the grandson of founder Georg Knorr wanted to sell his shares, Thiele was commissioned to find a buyer. During the process, Deutsche Bank told him that if he bought it himself, the bank would act as guarantor.[3] He purchased a controlling stake and later became sole owner.[4]

After becoming chief executive in 1987, Thiele initiated big structural changes and narrowed the group’s focus to braking technology.[5] He joined the company's supervisory board (Aufsichtsrat) in 2007. In 2018, he announced plans to take the company public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in what was considered the country’s second-largest initial public offering of 2018.[6]

According to Forbes, Thiele has a net worth of $17.5 billion, as of August 2020.[2]

Thiele was the largest shareholder in the German airline Lufthansa as of June 21, 2020.[7] When Lufthansa agreed to a state bailout amid the Coronavirus recession in 2020, Thiele raised his stake in the company from 10 to more than 15 percent.[8]

Thiele is married, with two children, and lives in Munich.[2]