NAIROBI—Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya's richest man and a presidential aspirant, resigned Thursday as finance minister of East Africa's largest economy, four days after the International Criminal Court charged him with inciting political violence following the country's 2007 elections.

The move shows new political pressures on Kenya's most powerful leaders, who have often been seen above the law by ordinary Kenyans. Those pressures appear to be tempered, however, as Mr. Kenyatta may continue to retain another top political position.

In a statement Thursday, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki said Mr. Kenyatta will stay on in his role as deputy prime minister. He was given that position as part of a power-sharing agreement between the president and his challenger, Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

The decision to keep Mr. Kenyatta, an ally of the president, in that post appears to break a public promise Mr. Kibaki made to remove officials charged by the international court.

The deputy prime minister post, however, is largely devoid of real political power, said Edward Gitahi, a senior investment manager and Africa analyst for PineBridge Investments, a global investment firm.

"The position has no portfolio," Mr. Gitahi said. "He cannot control policy unless that authority is delegated by the prime minister, who is his competitor for the presidency, so I don't think that's likely to happen."

The next presidential election is scheduled for 2013, when term-limit rules dictate that Mr. Kibaki must step down.

Mr. Kenyatta inherited some 500,000 acres of real estate that his father, Kenya's founding president, acquired at low prices through a settlement with the British. Mr. Kenyatta, who also owns significant stakes in Kenyan media, banking and agriculture, is worth is about $500 million, Forbes has estimated.

Francis Muthaura, 65, also resigned his cabinet position as head of the public service.

Messrs. Kenyatta and Muthara and two other men—radio presenter Joshua arap Sang and William Ruto, a former education minister and another presidential hopeful—were ordered on Monday to stand trial at the Hague for crimes against humanity in the bloody aftermath of the disputed 2007 election.

The accused men have declared their innocence and vowed to appeal the charges against them.

The political violence left at least 1,000 people dead. More than 500,000 people remain displaced in makeshift camps and slums around the country.

The Kenyan government and international humanitarian groups are anxious to avoid a repeat of the violence ahead of elections scheduled next year. The government finalized a new constitution in 2010 that includes overhauls to the judiciary and police, whose failure to prosecute hundreds of criminal cases has been documented by several human-rights organizations.

There is no law that would bar Mr. Kenyatta and Mr. Ruto from campaigning for the presidency while their cases are underway, although it remains unclear how the public will respond. Human-rights groups in Kenya had called for the indicted officials to be sacked.

Kenyan officials played down any impact on the country's economy, which has experienced steep food inflation and sharp currency fluctuations.

"For us, what's important is what is happening in the economy and that doesn't depend on one individual," said a Kenyan economic official. "It should have no effect at all."

Mugo Kibati, the director general of Vision 2030, Kenya's official long-term development plan, also said the government would continue to function normally.

"Essentially, there should be no strategic change," said Mr. Kibati, a presidential appointee. "President Mwai Kibaki is still the president of Kenya and the policies of Kenya are the policies of the president, and no one else."

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