Wachovia CFO Wurtz to leave

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wachovia Corp WB.N, which posted a record $8.86 billion second-quarter loss Tuesday, said Chief Financial Officer Thomas Wurtz will resign from the fourth-largest U.S. bank after a successor is named.

The Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender said Thursday it will begin an immediate search for a replacement.

Wurtz, 46, joined Wachovia in 1994, and was named CFO in January 2006. He was also treasurer for seven years.

It was not immediately clear why Wurtz is leaving, or what his future plans are. A Wachovia spokeswoman declined to comment.

Wurtz is the first senior executive set to leave since Robert Steel, a former U.S. Treasury undersecretary and Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) vice chairman, was named chief executive earlier this month.

Steel replaced Ken Thompson, who was ousted in early June after a series of financial and legal setbacks, including a poorly timed, $24.2 billion purchase in 2006 of California mortgage specialist Golden West Financial Corp.

In a statement, Steel said: "Tom has been a professional partner and colleague and we are grateful for all he has done for the company."

Wurtz, in a statement, called Wachovia "an excellent company with a very bright future."

Shares of Wachovia closed Thursday down $1.96, or 11 percent, at $15.69 on the New York Stock Exchange, as financial stocks declined broadly. The bank's shares have fallen 58.7 percent this year.

Wachovia announced Wurtz's departure after markets closed.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; editing by Carol Bishopric/Jeffrey Benkoe)