Victor Halberstadt (16 June 1939 – 13 September 2024) was a Dutch economist. He was a Crown Member of the

Social-Economic Council The Social and Economic Council ( Dutch: ''Sociaal-Economische Raad'', SER) is a major economic advisory council to the cabinet of the Netherlands. Formally it heads a system of sector-based regulatory organisations. It represents the social p ...

(1972–2004), president of the

International Institute of Public Finance The International Institute of Public Finance, or IIPF, is a global organization of economists specializing in public finance. It was founded in Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 in ...

(1987–1990), director of Het Concertgebouw (1988–2011) and other significant organizations.

Biography

Halberstadt was born on 16 June 1939, in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

, Netherlands. He was raised in a Jewish family and experienced the terrors of the Holocaust. From 1965 to 1974, Halberstadt was a senior lecturer of public sector finance at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, ) is a public university, public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Established in 1632 by municipal authorities, it is the fourth-oldest academic institution in the Netherlan ...

. From 1971 to 1973, he was an adviser of the Directorate-General of the

National Budget A government budget is a projection of the government's revenues and expenditure for a particular period, often referred to as a financial or fiscal year, which may or may not correspond with the calendar year. Government revenues mostly include ...

of the Dutch

Ministry of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfoli ...

. On 9 September 1974, he was appointed professor of public sector finance of the

University of Leiden Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange as a Protestant institution, it holds the distinction of being the oldest university in the Neth ...

. In October 1981, he was along with economist Cees de Galan appointed an informer to mediate the 1981 Dutch Cabinet crisis. Halberstadt held several positions, including Crown Member of the

(1972–2004), honorary secretary-general of the

Bilderberg Group The Bilderberg Meeting (also known as the "Bilderberg Group", "Bilderberg Conference" or "Bilderberg Club") is an annual off-the-record forum established in 1954 to foster dialogue between Europe and North America. The group's agenda, originally ...

(1980–2000), president of the

(1987–1990), director of Het Concertgebouw (1988–2011), member of the faculty of the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental organization, international advocacy non-governmental organization and think tank, based in Cologny, Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German ...

(1990–), member of the international advisory board of

Goldman Sachs Group Inc The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many international ...

(1991–), chairman of the

Daimler-Chrysler Mercedes-Benz Group AG (formerly Daimler-Benz, DaimlerChrysler, and Daimler) is a German multinational automotive company headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is one of the world's leading car manufacturers. Daimler-Be ...

international advisory board (1995–2005), member of the board of trustees of the

Dutch National Opera The Dutch National Opera (DNO; formerly De Nederlandse Opera, now De Nationale Opera in Dutch) is a Dutch opera company based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Its present home base is the Dutch National Opera & Ballet housed in the Stopera building, a m ...

(2003–), member of the board of trustees of the

Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKY School) is an autonomous postgraduate school of the National University of Singapore (NUS), named after the late former Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew. History The Lee Kuan Yew School of ...

(2005–) and member of the board of trustees of the

Boekman Foundation The Boekman Foundation Institute for arts, culture and related policy (Dutch: Boekmanstichting Kenniscentrum voor kunst, cultuur en beleid) is a research institute for Dutch arts and culture policy and practice. It was named after the Amsterdam ...

(2009–). Since 1990, Halberstadt was a Knight of the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands (, ) is a Dutch honours system, Dutch order of chivalry founded by William I of the Netherlands on 29 September 1815. The Order of the Netherlands Lion wa ...

. He was a member of the steering committee of the

Halberstadt was a member of the board of directors of the

International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children The International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, USA, with a regional presence in the United Kingdom, Europe, Turkey, Africa, Canada, Latin America, Caribbean, Southeast Asia, India, Jap ...

(ICMEC), a global nonprofit organization that combats

child sexual exploitation Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) defines the "umbrella" of crimes and activities that involve inflicting sexual abuse on to a child as a financial or personal opportunity. Commercial Sexual Exploitation consists of forcing a chil ...

child pornography Child pornography (also abbreviated as CP, also called child porn or kiddie porn, and child sexual abuse material, known by the acronym CSAM (underscoring that children can not be deemed willing participants under law)), is Eroticism, erotic ma ...

, and

child abduction Child abduction or child theft is the unauthorized removal of a Minor (law), minor (a child under the age of Age of majority, legal adulthood) from the Child custody, custody of the child's Parent, natural parents or Legal guardian, legally appoi ...

. Halberstadt died on 13 September 2024, at the age of 85.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halberstadt, Victor 1939 births 2024 deaths 21st-century Dutch economists Academic staff of the University of Amsterdam Academic staff of Leiden University DaimlerChrysler Goldman Sachs people Members of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion 20th-century Dutch economists Dutch people of Jewish descent