Volkswagen CFO to Step Down in June 2021 --2nd Update

By Nina Trentmann and William Boston 

BERLIN -- Volkswagen AG Chief Finance Officer Frank Witter Thursday said he plans to step down at the end of June 2021 for personal reasons.

"Because of my personal plans, the contract was prolonged for nine months only until June 30, 2021," Mr. Witter said Thursday in an email.

Mr. Witter, 60 years old, was appointed finance chief in October 2015. His current contract was set to expire in October. According to people familiar with the matter, Mr. Witter rejected an offer to extend his contract for another five years.

Mr. Witter became finance chief just weeks after Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen was charged by U.S. authorities with defrauding U.S. customers and the government by rigging diesel-powered vehicles to cheat emissions tests.

He has stewarded Volkswagen's finances at a time when the company, the world's largest automaker by sales, accrued more than $30 billion in fines, penalties and compensation to consumers after admitting to rigging nearly 11 million vehicles world-wide with illegal emissions software.

"Mr. Witter took the CFO job at Volkswagen at probably one of the worst possible times in the last 50 years, at the thick of the diesel crisis," said José Asumendi, head of European autos equity research at J.P. Morgan Securities LLC. He brought stability to the balance sheet and cash balance of the group at a critical time, Mr. Asumendi said.

Mr. Witter agreed to a brief extension of his contract to give Volkswagen more time to find a suitable replacement, according to people familiar.

A Volkswagen spokesman said the company would not immediately comment on contractual matters. The company will launch the search for a successor soon, the spokesman said.

Mr. Witter said he still has lots to do in his current role as CFO. "I won't be bored for sure," he said Thursday. He did not elaborate further.

Mr. Witter will likely spend much of the rest of his time in the role focused on resolving outstanding claims related to the company's emissions cheating, analysts said.

"For the company, as well as capital markets, it would be good to get this issue resolved," said Christian Ludwig, an analyst at German bank Bankhaus Lampe.

Pricing Volkswagen's new electric fleet and developing financing models for those vehicles would be another key objective for Mr. Witter before he departs, Mr. Ludwig said.

The planned sale of the company's MAN Energy Solutions division, which manufactures diesel engines for ships and power generators, would also be high on the priority list, according to Mr. Ludwig.

The news of Mr. Witter's planned departure was first reported by Germany's business monthly Manager Magazin.

Write to Nina Trentmann at [e-mail] and William Boston at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 20, 2020 16:24 ET (21:24 GMT)

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