Kranefuss was on the board of Braunekohle-Benzin AG (Brabag), a conglomerate of chemical firms and collieries concerned with the production of synthetic fuel.
[2] He was one of three directors of the Dresdner Bank, the others being Karl Rasche and Emil Heinrich Meyer, to belong to the exclusive Freunde des Reichsführer-SS circle.
[1] He also helped to ensure that BRABAG became one of the leading users of forced labour during the Second World War.
[1] Towards the end of the war Kranefuss, a well-connected international businessman, was also used by Himmler to open unofficial channels of contact with the Allies.
[6] At the war's end Kranefuss destroyed all the "Friends of Himmler" files and killed himself to keep its secrets.