In part, TCI's bid to replace Breuer reflects a mismatch between the expectations of Anglo-American shareholders and German management and their supporters. At a British company, the non-executives are supposed to make sure that the interests of the company and its investors are closely aligned. But at Deutsche Börse, the supervisory board's directors appeared as unquestioning supporters of Seifert's takeover plan.

Breuer's position was further undermined by the fact that as chairman of Deutche Bank, which had agreed to part-fund Seifert's takeover of the LSE, he had a conflict of interest that would have caused a storm in the UK.

The lack of accountability of hedge funds is indeed worrying, but so is the weakness of German corporate governance. Breuer will no doubt be considering these wider issues as Deutsche Börse's annual meeting looms ever closer.

Towering figure with Anglo-Saxon attitudes

As well as being head of Deutsche Börse, Rolf Breuer is the long-time boss of Deutsche Bank. He is 67, but looks no older than 60 with his suntan, fashionable ties and natty spectacles. Breuer is a great supporter of Frankfurt as an emerging financial centre, but doesn't believe it will ever overtake London, which has inbuilt advantages as the European destination of choice for American and Japanese financial institutions.

He is a keen golfer and lover of German classical music, especially Bach, but he also finds time to go walking in the Bavarian foothills or skiing in Austria.

Breuer joined Deutsche as a trainee in one of the branches in Frankfurt in 1956 and worked his way to the top, breaking off only briefly at the start of his career to study law - which never quite worked out. He preferred banking and couldn't wait to get back.

He is a supporter of wider share ownership in Germany and has long promoted a more Anglo-American approach to capitalism. He has worked as an investment banker in Deutsche, which has given him an insight into the cut and thrust of deal-making on the world stage.

In 2000, Deutsche's share price was trading at an all-time high, much of it down to reforms Breuer put in place. But when the bubble burst in 2001, Deutsche struggled to control costs and its investment banking division has been hit hard by the downturn. Deutsche's asset management arm is up for sale after a miserable performance, losing mandates worth billions. Several large banks have expressed an interest.

Breuer is admired and feared in equal measure in Germany. Social Democrats and trade unionists suspect that he is trying to shoehorn the country into the hire-and-fire culture of corporate America. But those who want Germany to reform its labour laws and cut its costly social security obligations view him as a breath of fresh air.