Xavier Niel, Matthieu Pigasse and Moez-Alexandre Zouari enter the dance. This Tuesday, June 13, the three investors announced in a written offer, revealed by the magazine Challenges, that they wanted to increase the capital of the Casino group to the tune of one billion euros. The precise content of the proposal has not leaked, but only 300 million euros could come directly from the trio, while the rest of the sum would be advanced by other investors, shareholders and creditors. In the morning, Casino confirmed having received a “preliminary expression of interest” from the trio.
The interest shown by the founder of Free Xavier Niel, the investment banker Matthieu Pigasse and Moez-Alexandre Zouari, who is also one of the group’s main franchisees, is not new. The three men created the distribution group Teract (owner of the Gamm Vert and Jardiland brands in particular), which had already announced at the beginning of the month that they were working “to bring out a lasting industrial and financial solution for the Casino group”.
In a press release, the entity had explained that it wanted “a strengthening of the Casino group’s equity and, to the extent necessary, an adaptation of the existing debt to the group’s capacities and the preservation of its growth potential”. But the group then withdrew from the negotiations, leaving the hand to its three co-founders.
Daniel Kretinsky in ambush
The investor trio is not the only one eyeing the French supermarket group. Until then, Daniel Kretinsky was considered the best placed. The Czech billionaire intended to take control of Casino, in particular by offering certain creditors to draw a line under approximately 40% of the group’s debt, in exchange for cash or shares.
The media mogul, including magazine owner She Or Marianne, and present in the capital of the Fnac Darty group, had also offered to provide the distributor with 750 million euros as part of a capital increase. The spokesperson for the Czech billionaire did not comment on the offer of the trio Xavier Niel, Matthieu Pigasse and Moez-Alexandre Zouari.
A group in turmoil
The group employs 200,000 people worldwide, including a large quarter in France, under many brands such as Vival, Spar, Franprix or Leader Price, Franprix or Monoprix. Under its own brand, Casino operates 1,285 points of sale, ranging from hypermarkets to convenience stores.
But the distributor would need an injection of cash. Casino is indeed in great financial difficulty. On May 26, the group announced that it was entering into a conciliation procedure for a period of four months. The objective of the operation was to restructure the colossal debt accumulated by the group. At the end of 2022, it peaked at 6.4 billion euros, of which 4.5 billion related to its activity in France.
At the same time, Casino announced its intention to reduce its size by selling a hundred of its points of sale to its competitor Intermarché. This transfer of activity should concern the equivalent of 1.15 billion euros in turnover, and 4,000 employees. The operation should allow the group to release around 100 million euros.
The group’s CEO, Jean-Charles Naouri, meanwhile spent a day in police custody last week, in a case of alleged price manipulation and insider trading. He was released without charge against him at this stage.