#Qatar fund emboldens calls for governance change at Lagardere | Reuters

Qatar fund emboldens calls for governance change at Lagardere | Reuters:

Qatar's sovereign wealth fund stepped into the market battle over struggling Lagardere LAGA.PA on Wednesday by calling for fair representation for all large shareholders in the French media and publishing group.

Qatar’s rare public incursion adds up pressure on the company’s chief executive Arnaud Lagardere and increases the chances of a shake-up within the group, which has become the arena for a proxy war involving two French billionaires, Bernard Arnault and Vincent Bolloré.


Qatar Holding, a subsidiary of the Qatar Investment Authority and Lagardere’s third-biggest investor with 13%, said in a statement late on Tuesday that it considered it “legitimate that all significant shareholders be fairly represented.”

This comes after calls by Lagardere's two biggest shareholders, media group Vivendi VIV.PA, controlled by Bollore, and activist fund Amber, to hold a general meeting to replace four of the nine members of Lagardere's supervisory board.