Shareholder advisor says has 'real doubts' over new VW management

LONDON (Reuters) - Shareholder advisory firm Hermes EOS said it has "real doubts" about whether key Volkswagen stakeholders recognize the need for fundamental reform at the company, in the middle of an emissions-cheating scandal.

Hermes EOS, which engages with companies on a range of corporate governance issues on behalf of asset owners such as pension funds, said it was concerned about the appointment of "corporate insiders" to the top jobs.

"The supervisory board's choice of corporate insiders as CEO and chair-elect also raises some real doubts whether the key shareholders have recognized the need for fundamental reform and a real new beginning," Hans-Christoph Hirt, director at Hermes EOS, said in a statement.

As a result, Hermes EOS would attend an extraordinary general meeting of VW (>> Volkswagen AG) shareholders in November to explain its concerns about the firm's corporate governance and suggest changes to both management and company culture.

Matthias Mueller, the head of VW's Porsche unit, was last week appointed to replace Martin Winterkorn as CEO, a decision that some investors felt had been taken too quickly.

(Reporting By Sinead Cruise and Simon Jessop; Editing by Nishant Kumar)