The revelations about Volkswagen’s emissions fraud, added to recent scandals at Siemens and Deutsche Bank, show a German corporate establishment that is out of step with a society that is actively trying to atone for 20th-century sins, writes Leonid Bershidsy

The software at the centre of Volkswagen’s emissions scandal in the US was built into its cars in Europe as well, though it is not yet clear if it helped cheat tests as it did in the US.

Resignation comes a day after asking the staff and public for trust

Martin Winterkorn’s days as head of Volkswagen appeared numbered yesterday after the German car maker said a scandal over falsified vehicle emission tests in the US could affect 11m of its cars worldwide.

Volkswagen lost almost a quarter of its market value after it admitted to cheating on US air pollution tests for years, putting pressure on chief executive Martin Winterkorn to fix the damaged reputation of the world’s biggest car maker.

Volkswagen has ordered an external investigation, after US regulators found that its software for diesel cars gave false emissions data, its CEO said yesterday. He said he was “deeply sorry” for the violation of US rules.

London: Bank of England deputy governor Andrew Bailey said the increasingly large fines banks face for poor conduct threaten to undermine efforts to recapitalise the industry.

Volkswagen Group has announced a spending programme of over €50bn in its automotive division over the next three years.