VOW Volkswagen AG

By William Boston and Nina Trentmann 

BERLIN -- Volkswagen AG Chief Finance Officer Frank Witter 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 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 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 agreed to a brief extension of his contract to give Volkswagen more time to find a suitable replacement, according to the 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.

The news was first reported by Germany's business monthly Manager Magazin.

Write to William Boston at william.boston@wsj.com and Nina Trentmann at Nina.Trentmann@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 20, 2020 12:27 ET (17:27 GMT)

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