The European Union could be destroyed by the debt crisis, billionaire investor George Soros said on Monday, calling on Germany to step up and take responsibility for saving the common currency. The alternative would be for Germany to exit the Eurozone.

Soros became well-known for profiting by betting strong against the sterling pound in 1992.

"There is a real danger of the euro destroying the European Union," Soros warned. "The way to escape it is for Germany to accept...greater commitment to helping not only its interests but the interests of the debtor countries, and playing the role of the benevolent hegemon."

Germany should act as the leader of the European Union in the same way that the United States did after World War II, the Chairman of Soros Fund Management said at a luncheon hosted by the National Association for Business Economics.

Soros proposed to step up a eurobond plan as a way to share risks across the Eurozone. "If successful, it would cost very little, but if it fails, it would drag down Germany," he said before offering another solution: Let Germany leave the euro.

"That way, the problem would disappear as the value of euro declines and bond yields of debtor countries adjust, he explained.

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