Michael Diekmann - who has canoed down the Zambezi, ridden in Argentina and trekked to K2 - is not one of those chief executives who finds it difficult to switch off from work. This past weekend, it is safe to say, Allianz's chief executive was particularly looking forward to getting away from the day job.

A week ago today, Mr Diekmann was on a podium in Frankfurt to explain one of his biggest deals at the helm of Europe's biggest insurance company: the sale of Dresdner Bank to Commerzbank after a frantic weekend of negotiations and board meetings. For months Dresdner's fate was the subject of constant speculation. Now the €9.8bn ( ￡8bn) deal has brought a partial end to one of the most intractable problems of the 53-year-old's tenure.

Allianz bought Dresdner in 2001 but the bank tottered through a string of crises, with each green shoot of revival almost as quickly withering. The financial crisis of last year was to prove decisive.