Horst Koehler, former head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) before becoming Germany’s president in 2004, died on Saturday aged 81 after a brief illness.

Mr Koehler, who was head of state from 2004 to 2010, died in Berlin in the early hours, surrounded by his family, Germany’s current president announced.

President Frank-Walter Steinmeier led tributes to Mr Koehler, saying that Germany had “lost a highly esteemed and extremely popular person who achieved great things – for our country and in the world”.

In a post on X, Olaf Scholz, the chancellor, hailed Mr Koehler as a “committed politician who worked throughout his life for a fairer world”.

An economist by training, he was the first German head of state who was not a career politician.

Before becoming president he was the head of the IMF in Washington from 2000 to 2004, and also held other roles in the civil service and banking.