Piech to Cut Last Ties with VW

Long-time Volkswagen patriarch Ferdinand Piech will sever his final ties with the carmaker on Dec. 8 when he resigns from the board of the holding company that controls VW.

The complex handoff ends three decades of Piech’s autocratic influence. His iron-fisted control over the company propelled VW to the top of the global auto industry. But it also fostered an inefficient bureaucracy and created a climate of fear that led to the company’s costly diesel emission cheating scandal.

Piech was pushed out as chairman of VW Group in April 2015 after a power struggle involving the diesel crisis. He also gave up the chairmanship of Porsche Automobil Holding SE, although he remained on the board. Porsche SE owns a controlling proportion of VW’s voting shares.

Piech has transferred his personal stake—nearly 15% of the holding company worth an estimated €1 billion ($1.2 billion)—to other members of the carmaker’s founding Piech and Porsche families. The final step will come a month from now when he gives up his seat on the Porsche SE board.