Thomas Groß | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1965-08-17)August 17, 1965 (age 60) |
| Other names | Thomas Gross |
| Education | Karlsruhe Institute of Technology |
| Occupations | Business executive,banker |
| Known for | CEO of German commercial bankHelaba |
Thomas Groß (born August 1965) is a Germanbanking executive. He has served asChief Executive Officer of theLandesbank Hessen-Thüringen (Helaba) since 1 June 2020 and has been a member of itsmanagement board since 2012.[1] In November 2025, he was elected President of theAssociation of German Public Banks.[2][3]
Groß studiedIndustrial Engineering and Management at theUniversity of Karlsruhe and graduated in 1992.[4][5][6]
Groß began his professional career in 1992 atBoston Consulting Group.[7][8][9] From 2000, he became partner and managing director in BCG's Frankfurt office and focused on advising financial services institutions. His focus was on banks and savings banks in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Central and Eastern Europe.[10][11] From 2001 to 2004, he assumed the role of Global Head of Risk Management at BCG[12].
From 2004, Groß moved toHypoVereinsbank, Initially as Head of Credit Risk Controlling, later as Executive Board Member for Risk Controlling, and from 2006 also as Head of Credit Risk Control.[13] His responsibilities included managing credit risk control, with group-level scope connected to theUniCredit Group inMilan.[14] In October 2006, Groß became a member of the management board ofBank Austria asChief Risk Officer. In 2008, his departure from the board in Vienna and a return to Germany were reported in the context of broader board changes at the bank.[15]
From 2008 to 2012, Groß served as a member of the management board atWestLB, linked to theChief Risk Officer role and, from 2011, toChief Financial Officer[16][17]
Groß joinedHelaba’s management board in 2012. He became deputy CEO (stellvertretender Vorstandsvorsitzender) in 2015.[18] On 1 June 2020, he assumed the role of CEO, succeeding Herbert Hans Grüntker. He is then responsible for group management and control, human resources and legal affairs, finance, internal audit, Frankfurter Sparkasse, andFrankfurter Bankgesellschaft.[19][20] During his tenure, in July 2025, Reuters reported that Helaba was weighing a potential takeover ofAareal Bank, describing talks as early-stage and noting both banks declined to comment.[21] In October 2025, Handelsblatt reported that takeover talks had ended.[22]
On 27 November 2025, Groß was elected President of the Association of German Public Banks for a three-year term, succeeding Eckhard Forst.[23]
In January 2025, Groß calls for a less politicized restart of the debate on a common European deposit insurance scheme.[24]