Walther Funk was a German economist and National Socialist (Nazi) Party member who served Adolph Hitler as his economics minister and head of the German state bank. Funk is credited with paving the way for Hitler's ascension to power by reassuring German industrialists that Hitler would be good for Germany and for their business enterprises. After the defeat of Germany in World War II, Funk was indicted on war crimes charges by the International Military Tribunal (IMT) and tried with other leading Nazi officials at Nuremberg.

Funk was born on August 18, 1890, in Trakehen, Germany. Raised in a wealthy merchant family, Funk studied political science, literature, and music at the University of Berlin. He began a journalism career in 1912 but enlisted in the army during World War I. He was discharged in 1916 as unfit for service and returned to his journalism career. In 1922, he became the editor of a...