LVMH’s Arnault Leaned On Government to Exit Tiffany Deal
LVMH’s Arnault Leaned On Government To Exit Tiffany Deal
(Bloomberg) -- LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault asked for help from the French government in an effort to pull out of a deal to buy Tiffany, according to a person familiar with the government’s thinking.
The wealthiest man in France initiated the move that led to the world’s biggest luxury conglomerate announcing it would no longer buy the U.S. jewelry maker, according to two people familiar with the situation. LVMH denied what a spokesman called “malicious and totally unfounded allegations.”
LVMH moved Wednesday to call off the $16 billion purchase of Tiffany, the luxury industry’s biggest takeover. The jeweler sued the French company to try to keep the deal on track.
The Louis Vuitton owner said the French government requested that it delay the deal for reasons related to a U.S.-France trade dispute. Tiffany said that LVMH was trying to leverage the protests against police brutality and the Covid-19 pandemic to seek a lower price.
While there’s no breakup fee and LVMH could just walk away without government intervention, doing so could carry risks. Tiffany’s lawsuit in Delaware seeks to uphold the luxury giant’s contract to complete the deal, something LVMH had said previously it would stand by, even as the companies wrangled over the timing.
Arnault’s reputation as a dealmaker could also take a hit. The tycoon has built his fortune and luxury empire on decades of successful mergers and acquisitions as he amassed sought-after brands like Christian Dior and Moët & Chandon Champagne. Arnault ranks as the world’s fourth-richest person, even though his fortune is down by close to $20 billion this year alone.
LVMH shares traded 0.5% lower early Thursday in Paris, a day after Tiffany fell 6.4% in New York.
The French company cited a letter by Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian about the trade dispute with the U.S. as a reason to get out of the deal. One person said the billionaire personally reached out to the government to get a state of play on those talks.
Foreign Ministry
Arnault initially sought support from the finance ministry, which rejected him, before going to the foreign ministry. A spokesperson for the French presidency declined to comment, while the ministry of foreign affairs didn’t return requests for comment. The finance ministry declined to comment.
LVMH Chief Financial Officer Jean-Jacques Guiony was asked during a press conference on Wednesday if the company sought help from the government. His answer: “You must be joking. Are you seriously suggesting that we procured the letter? I don’t even want to answer that question.”
One of the people said the letter was intended as guidance on the dispute over tariffs, although LVMH said in a statement Wednesday that it “directed” the company to postpone the acquisition until after Jan. 6 and cited it as one of the reasons why the deal wouldn’t be completed.
In France, as elsewhere in Europe, some business titans have close relationships with those in power. Before Emmanuel Macron’s election in 2017, the billionaire publicly backed the candidate. More recently, Arnault praised Macron’s work to improve France’s image among international investors.
The wife of Macron, Brigitte, is close to Arnault’s daughter Delphine. The former schoolteacher counts members of the Arnault family among her former students, according to various books about the couple. She is also often photographed wearing Louis Vuitton dresses borrowed from the collection.
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