Ackermann cited in suicide note of Zurich CFO

Zurich shares rose in trading on the Zurich stock exchange after the company said the problems between the two apparently had nothing to do with financial performance. That uptick followed four days of declines.

In the conference call, the company said there was no link between Wauthier's death and Zurich's financial performance. "We stand by everything we said at the half year," Chief Executive Martin Senn said.

Tom de Swaan, acting chairman after Ackermann quit, said the company planned to investigate whether Wauthier had been put under undue strain before his death. Wauthier, a company veteran, was found dead at his family's lakefront home on Monday.

According to Reuters, Wauthier's family shared the contents of the letter with senior executives at the firm. Wauthier explicitly blamed Ackermann in the note for putting him under pressure, said a source, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the subject.

Ackerman described the allegations as "unfounded" but said he would leave to avoid damaging Zurich's reputation. The insurer said Ackermann had made a personal decision to leave after a year as chairman.

According to Reuters' sources, Ackermann and Wauthier had clashed over the company's second-quarter results and how they were presented earlier this month.