* Former Deutsche Bank boss steps down as Zurich chairman
* Follows apparent suicide of CFO Pierre Wauthier
* Several top executives have left Zurich in past year
* Tom de Swaan takes over as acting chairman
By Katharina Bart
ZURICH, Aug 29 (Reuters) - Josef Ackermann, the former headof Deutsche Bank, resigned on Thursday as chairman ofZurich Insurance over the apparent suicide of theSwiss insurer's finance chief.
Ackermann said the family of chief financial officer PierreWauthier, who had worked at Europe's No. 3 insurance group for17 years, believed he shared some of the blame for his death.
Wauthier's death came just weeks after the head of telecomsfirm Swisscom, Carsten Schloter, died in anotherapparent suicide. The deaths have shocked corporate Switzerlandand prompted calls for greater support for boardroomhigh-fliers.
"I have reasons to believe that the family is of the opinionthat I should take my share of responsibility, as unfounded asany allegations might be," Ackermann said in a statement, addingthat he wanted to avoid any damage to Zurich's reputation.
Swiss police said that Wauthier - who was found dead at hissuburban home near Zug on Monday - appeared to have committedsuicide.
A spokeswoman for Zurich Insurance did not elaborate on whatallegations Ackermann was referring to surrounding Wauthier, whowas 53 and left a wife and two children.
Wauthier's widow declined comment on Thursday. And at thefamily's lakefront home, once a traditional Swiss inn, asecurity guard said relatives did not wish to talk.
"NO CONFLICTS"
Zurich's chief executive Martin Senn said he was not awareof any dispute that could have driven Wauthier to his death.
"We didn't spot any conflicts that could or should have ledto such a death," Senn told Swiss television.
However, a former colleague of Wauthier's said there waspressure within the company to increase its share price.
Two insurance executives outside the firm's headquarters inZurich described their colleagues as "somewhat shellshocked" andsaid Ackermann's departure was a surprise for the industry.
Zurich said Vice-Chairman Tom de Swaan would take over asacting chairman.
One of Europe's leading economic power brokers, Ackermann,65, transformed Germany's Deutsche Bank and played a role in theeuro zone's financial crisis as chairman of the Institute ofInternational Finance (IIF).
He was touted as a candidate for top financial jobs in hisnative Switzerland before he took the relatively low-key role atZurich last year. He also sits on the boards of Royal DutchShell, Siemens and Investor AB.
Ackermann has survived controversy before. In 2006, he paid3.2 million euros, without admitting wrongdoing, to avoid trialin a dispute over payments to executives at telecoms firmMannesmann, where he sat on the board of directors.
One of few senior industry figures to keep his job throughthe current financial crisis, he became a forceful publicadvocate for the Swiss financial sector after leaving Deutsche.
"Ackermann's mission when he came was to shake up Zurich, toinfuse a more dynamic mentality into it," said a person close tothe former Zurich chairman.
"Yes, insurance isn't banking. But there was still moreoomph to be wrung out of Zurich, he thought."
TRACK RECORD
When Ackermann took over as Deutsche Bank chief executive inMay 2002, radical surgery was needed. Burdened with high costs,it was slipping as one of the largest lenders in Europe.
The first non-German to lead the bank, Ackermann was askedto transform it into a "global champion", but fell out with aGerman establishment that saw Deutsche's traditional role assupporting national industries.
When Ackermann joined the Frankfurt-based institution, thebank derived more than 70 percent of revenues from Germany.Ackermann sold off industrial holdings and slashed jobs, andDeutsche now makes less than 30 percent of its revenue there.
However, his arrival at Zurich failed to impress investorsand there was considerable change in the top ranks.
Former general insurance head Mario Greco left a year ago tobecome head of Italian insurer Generali. Two weeks agothe head of its life insurance arm, Kevin Hogan, left to becomeAIG's head of consumer insurance.
On Aug. 15, Zurich said it would be hard pressed to meetcertain performance targets after posting a 27 percent fall insecond-quarter net profit due to natural disaster payouts, whichtopped those of European rivals because of its high exposure tothe United States.
The shares closed down 2.47 percent at 228.80 francs, butremained above the low of 225.6 francs that they reached onTuesday after news of Wauthier's death. The volume of sharestraded on the day, however, was the highest in over three years.
