ZURICH — Josef Ackermann, the chairman of Zurich Insurance, resigned on Thursday over the apparent suicide of the insurer’s chief financial officer, further roiling the top ranks of the company.

Mr. Ackermann said the family of Pierrer Wauthier, who worked at Europe’s No. 3 insurance group for 17 years, believed he shared some of the blame for his death.

“I have reasons to believe that the family is of the opinion that I should take my share of responsibility, as unfounded as any allegations might be,” he said in a statement Thursday. “As a consequence, I see the possibility of a continued successful board leadership to the benefit of Zurich called into question.” A Zurich Insurance spokeswoman did not elaborate on what allegations Mr. Ackermann was referring to. Mr. Wauthier, who had a wife and two children, was found dead Monday at his home in Zug, a lakefront suburb of Zurich.

Returning to his native Switzerland after leaving the top job at Deutsche Bank last year, Mr. Ackermann became a forceful advocate for the Swiss financial sector.

Tom de Swaan, vice chairman, will take over as acting chairman, the insurer said.

Zurich Insurance’s top ranks have seen considerable change in the last 12 months. The former head of its general insurance division, Mario Greco, left in the middle of last year to become head of the Italian insurer Generali. Two weeks ago the head of Zurich’s life insurance arm, Kevin Hogan, left to become head of consumer insurance for American International Group.

“When the chairman leaves after you’ve already lost your head of global life, Mario Greco, and then the unexpected loss of Pierre Wauthier as C.F.O., it will lead to more uncertainty,” Daniel Bischof, an analyst at Helvea, said.

Zurich said on Aug. 15 that it would be hard pressed to meet certain performance targets after posting a 27 percent decline in net profit for the second quarter. The insurer cited natural disaster payouts, which were higher than those of other European insurers because of its high exposure to the United States.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/30/business/global/after-a-suicide-chairman-of-zurich-insurance-quits.html?partner=rss&emc=rss