Her criticisms serve as a painful reminder of Wauthier's death for the 142-year old Swiss company, that has spent the last seven months trying to reassure investors and move on.

Wauthier killed himself last August, leaving behind a suicide note in which he described himself as demoralised because of a new, aggressive tone at Zurich under then-chairman Ackermann.

Ackermann stepped down several days later, but has denied responsibility for what he called a “very tragic event”. He declined to comment through a spokesman on Wednesday.

An investigation into Wauthier's death, commissioned by Switzerland's financial regulator FINMA and conducted by law firm Homburger, found no indication that the CFO was subjected to any undue or inappropriate pressure, Zurich said in November.

Wauthier was joined on the podium at the annual meeting by her daughter Laura and the mother and brother of her late husband.

Wauthier and Pierre's mother Ingrid, at times fighting to control their emotions, took turns to read from a statement.

Pierre's brother Michel, who also spoke, said: “It was not normal pressure at the office that led to his suicide.”

Wauthier, who is French, also said she was returning her husband's laptop, which she said had not been examined by investigators.

She had also spoken of her concerns about the review into her husband's death in an interview with Reuters.

Zurich Chairman Tom de Swaan paused for several seconds at the podium before repeating that the insurer had no indication Wauthier would commit suicide, and defending what he called a comprehensive review into whether the CFO had come under any undue pressure.

“The FINMA-led investigation found no indication of any such pressure,” de Swaan said.

De Swaan, who assumed the role of chairman in September after Ackermann's resignation, was re-elected by 89.7% of shareholders in a vote at the meeting.

The work of the company's board and management in 2013 was also approved by shareholders, garnering 98.8% of votes.

(Reporting by Alice Baghdjian, Katharina Bart and Paul Arnold; Editing by Noah Barkin and Jane Merriman)