FRANKFURT—Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann, a relentless critic of the European Central Bank’s ultra easy monetary policy, will step down more than five years early, opening the door for Germany’s new government to pick a less confrontational successor.
Weidmann said he would leave for personal reasons on Dec. 31, just days after the ECB must make a crucial decision on winding down pandemic-era stimulus that has revived growth but also pushed inflation to its highest rate in over a decade.