The son of a wealthy industrialist, Helfferich served during the war as Minister of the Interior and Minister of Finance. He also served as Vice-Chancellor during the Bethmann-Hollweg and Michaelis years (May 1916 - Nov 1917). In 1903, he wrote the book Das Geld (Money) in which he defended use of the gold standard. He then became a successful banker/financier until 1915, when he headed up the financing of the war effort as State Secretary for the Treasury. After the war, Helfferich joined the DNVP (German National People's Party) and became a bitter enemy of the Weimar Republic. In April 1924, he died in a train accident on 23 April 1924 near Bellinzona, Switzerland.