Josef Ackermann, chairman of the management board and the group executive committee of Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest bank, will not be a candidate for the supervisory board after he steps down from the management board in 2012.

Ackermann has been chairman of the management board since 2002. Earlier this year, Jürgen Fitschen and Anshu Jain were named co-chief executive officers.

“The extremely challenging conditions on the international financial markets and in the political-regulatory environment demand my full attention as the chairman of the bank’s management board. This does not allow enough scope for the many talks with individual shareholders necessary to implement the original plan,” said Dr Ackermann.

The nomination committee has recommended Dr Paul Achleitner, who is a member of the board of management of Allianz, the financial services firm, for election to the supervisory board at the general meeting in May 2012. This is still pending formal approval from Allianz.

Dr Ackermann leaves the board at a time when Deutsche's wealth management operations have shown robust results, contrasting with some of its peers. In October, the Frankfurt-listed bank reported a pre-tax profit of €186 million ($259 million) from its asset and wealth management arm for the third quarter – more than doubling the Q3 2010 figure of €91 million.