Hands-On Club Deals Over Outsider Bids

“Berger, who enjoys taking risks but is a realist, knows his value to Benko very well. Thanks also to the almost inexhaustible network of the advisor, Benko can gain connections in politics and new investors. Thus, Robert Peugeot from the namesake auto dynasty likely places his trust and invests in Benko's company also because his good old acquaintance Roland Berger is among the shareholders. And for Klaus-Michael Kühne, majority owner of the forwarding company Kühne & Nagel, the name Robert Peugeot matters when he joins the circle of investors years later.”

“In 2017, the foundation board decides to invest in Signa, with RAG acquiring a 5 percent stake in Prime and a 3.5 percent stake in Development, almost simultaneously the Agricultural Insurance Association from Münster (LVM) also strikes. Benko is aware of the needs of insurers and foundations that rely on generating returns. Representatives of the RAG Foundation even join the supervisory board of Signa real estate companies, but remain largely invisible there.”