 He played a prominent role in the development of merchant banking.He was born in the village of Seeburg, Germany (today part of Bad Urach), the only child of Georges Siegmund Warburg and Lucie.Georges Siegmund Warburg and Lucie raised a young Siegmund Warburg on an estate (Uhenfels Castle) in Swabia in South West Germany far away from the main branch of the family, which operated the second largest bank in Hamburg.