VW CEO Martin Winterkorn resigns!

Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Volkswagen AG CEO, publicly apologized for the emission fraud that was recently exposed in the USA. The company has faced a colossal set back ever since the expose, with matters worsened by the fact that the scandal was caught in the USA; a market where the brand has been working tirelessly to expand its reach. Reports of VW's CEO resigning were initially denied by the group's officials, but it has now been officially announced that Dr. Martin Winterkorn has in fact, resigned.

The VW chief's future was hanging in the balance recently as issues with former VW Chairman Ferdinand Piech had the Porsche and Piech families (that head Volkswagen AG) engaging in a battle involving Winterkorn's future. The feud ended with Ferdinand Pieche resigning. While issues within the group's management did have shareholders worried, the recent scam has left the company's reputation tarnished.

Winterkorn stated that he was shocked that this could have happened in the VW group and that the company needed a fresh start. His resignation may be seen as the company's way of showing investors and customers that VW is acting on the crisis, but that doesn't change the situation that Volkswagen has backed itself into. The German automaker stated that as many as 11 million cars worldwide contained the software used to cheat the emission tests, though it is not clear if the software has been used to deceive regulations in other markets. 

A successor to Winterkorn hasn't been named yet, but likely candidates for the post include Porsche chief - Matthias Muller and Audi chief - Rupert Stadler.

Source: BBC