World Crisis Online

Germany’s Bundesbank president will stand down at the end of April, it was agreed on Friday, after a week of confusion that threw into doubt the country’s chances of securing the European Central Bank presidency later this year.

Axel Weber would step aside with effect from April 30, the government said after a meeting in Berlin between the Bundesbank president and Angela Merkel, the chancellor.

Mr Weber angered Berlin this week after it emerged on Wednesday that he no longer saw himself as able to succeed Jean-Claude Trichet, the ECB president, whose eight-year non-renewable term expires at the end of October.

His unexpected decision left Berlin scrambling to find an alternative candidate at a time when it was still involved in heated discussion on plans to stabilise the eurozone after its year-long debt crisis.

Speaking just hours before Mr Weber’s resignation was announced formally, Wolfgang Schäuble, the finance minister, hinted Berlin might now not push its own candidate. “Germany never said that it insisted on a German candidate,” he said.

Mr Weber gave no explanation for his resignation beyond a Bundesbank statement citing “personal reasons”. But he is understood to have had reservations about taking on the ECB presidency given the shift in the eurozone towards permanent bail-out mechanisms and an activist central bank.

He may also have lacked the necessary support to take the top job at the euro’s monetary guardian. France had reacted badly to his “hawkish” monetary policy instincts and public opposition to the ECB’s government bond programme.

The Bundesbank president may want to pursue a private sector career and German media have speculated on a switch to Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest by assets. But his chances of securing a top job at such an institution also appeared undermined on Friday by this week’s events.

Sigmar Gabriel, leader of the opposition Social Democrats, accused him of “irresponsible” behaviour, saying he was jumping ship “at a time when we are by no means over the financial and monetary crises”. German conservatives are likely to be alarmed at the damage to the Bundesbank’s reputation.

The announcement of Mr Weber’s resignation after a meeting with the chancellor may raise questions about the central bank’s independence. However, the Bundesbank said Mr Weber had wanted to make his statement on Wednesday but had delayed it at Ms Merkel’s request for a face-to-face meeting.

Mr Weber’s predecessor as Bundesbank president also departed abruptly. In 2004, Ernst Welteke was forced to resign after accepting hospitality from Dresdner Bank.

Initially, Mr Weber is expected to return to an academic post. Any switch to the private sector will be closely monitored by the Bundesbank’s board, which could insist on a cooling-off period of up to two years. “You can expect that the board of the Bundesbank would be vigilant in preserving the integrity of the institution,” said a Bundesbank source.

A successor to Mr Weber would be announced next week, the government said. Jens Weidmann, economic adviser to Ms Merkel, is seen as the frontrunner, although his proximity to the chancellor would make him a controversial choice.

Discussions on Mr Trichet’s successor would be shelved until after eurozone leaders agreed in March on a package of measures to stabilise the bloc, Mr Schäuble said.

With Mr Weber eliminated, an alternative German candidate for the ECB presidency could be Klaus Regling, head of the eurozone’s new €440bn ($595bn) rescue fund.