In Germany they are called “Heuschrecken” which translates to “Locusts” because thats how they operate.

Only in german: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heuschreckendebatte

This is what librewolf translated the first section to:

A locust debate in Germany in April and May 2005 over a statement by the then SPD chairman Franz Müntefering is referred to as a locust debate. This compared the economic action of some “anonymous investors” with locust plagues.

The term “locust” has since been regarded in German political parlance as a derogatory animal metaphor for private equity companies and other forms of equity participation, such as in the public-private partnership model, with allegedly short-term or excessive return expectations, such as hedge funds or so-called vulture funds.

The term and debate have been criticized variously, including as in parts anti-Semitic and anti-American.

The last part is super funny to me, because it just speaks to the way that the defenders of these investment tactics think.

I went and looked at the referenced “vulture fund” phrase and was not disappointed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulture_fund