A former diplomat, David de Pury held several government posts between 1970 and 1991, including posts at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bern. At the end of the 1980s, he was governor of Switzerland at the Inter-American Development Bank. Between 1992 and 1996, de Pury was also co-chairman of ABB and a member of the board of directors of several companies, notably Nestlé. In 1996, he founded his own company, de Pury, Pictet, Turrettini. De Pury was also president of the newpaper “Le Temps” and vice-president of the Lucerne classical music festival. He represented Nestlé on the Foundation Board from 1997 to 2000.