Elf

"it is Arnault himself who finds Finial Holdings, a mysterious Lebanese financial company with Syrian capital, a former shareholder of Novotel: it brings in 45 million. The oil groups Elf and Total each contribute 47.5 million francs to the pot, through financial subsidiaries. The British bank Charterhouse leaves a 5-million-franc calling card. Even the Truffaut nurseryman is in on it!"

"What happened? The Willot family were reportedly informed that if they did not sign with Arnault, the judicial liquidation of their assets would be a foregone conclusion. But how were they allowed to sign this agreement? Various clues already testified to the discreet commitment of the public authorities to Arnault. In particular, the presence of Elf and Total, public and semi-public companies, in his round table. Suddenly, things become more obvious: because of the indictments they were facing, the Willot family did not have free disposal of their shares, which were placed under the double sequestration of the Boussac bankruptcy trustees and the president of the Crédit national. But both have agreed to lift the sequestration. On whose orders? The trustees are under the jurisdiction of the commercial court, which was then under the influence of the State, at least for matters of this importance. As for the president of the Crédit national, he is appointed by the government and takes his orders from it. His decision therefore testifies to the support that Bernard Arnault enjoys at the highest level. Simply because of his good presentation, his polytechnic degree, and his perfect knowledge of the case? This is the most favorable hypothesis."

"The simplest, of course, are the dividends. While the payout ratio (percentage of profit distributed to shareholders) was 28.1% in 1991, it reached 41.4% in 1996, or 1.68 billion francs. Over time, this growth in dividends, in volume and as a percentage of profits, will mechanically push the LVMH share price higher, at least until 1996 when it reaches its all-time high at 1,327 francs: with 110 billion francs (16.77 billion euros), LVMH becomes the largest French company in terms of market capitalization, ahead of Elf and Carrefour, which follow closely at 100 billion."

"The group of investors, apart from Ferinel (11.5%), includes the companies Elf and Total (12%), Worms et Cie (10%), the Lebanese-Syrian holding Finial (5%), Lazard Frères (10%), and the British financial institution Charterhouse (1%)."