Volkswagen loses sole independent board member, shareholders question turnaround

Susanne Wiegand, the only truly independent director on Volkswagen's supervisory board, announced she will not seek re‑election after less than a year in the role. Her departure was confirmed at the company's virtual annual meeting by board chairman Hans Dieter Pötsch.

Shareholder representative Tanja Bauer of Deka called the move "a very negative signal" and warned of a "risk of progressive decline" for the carmaker. The exit comes as Volkswagen grapples with a sluggish electric‑vehicle rollout, intense Chinese competition and high costs, prompting a 20 % drop in its share price since early 2025. The group has already outlined a restructuring plan that includes 50,000 job cuts across VW, Audi, Porsche and its software division Cariad, and a reduction of global production capacity to around nine million units per year. CEO Oliver Blume said a new, more ambitious transformation program will be decided this summer.