LVMH-Hermès affair: Reuters revelations contradict Bernard Arnault's defence

On Thursday, Reuters published an investigation that brought new information to light in one of the luxury sector's most high-profile cases: the acquisition of Hermès shares by the LVMH group. According to the news agency, LVMH made a confidential agreement in 2002 with Éric Freymond, who was the wealth manager for Nicolas Puech, one of the heirs to the house of Hermès.

Last June, the LVMH group formally denied in court any attempt to acquire the shares of Nicolas Puech, an heir of the Hermès founding family. The conglomerate stated in its filing: “The group never considered acquiring Nicolas Puech's stake, and certainly not against his will.” Recent legal documents, however, indicate that the company led by Bernard Arnault signed an agreement in 2002 to purchase these shares.

This document was reportedly negotiated with the heir's financial advisor, Eric Freymond, who passed away in July 2025. The archives reviewed by the Reuters team also reveal that the family holding company of LVMH's chairman and chief executive officer paid at least 20 million dollars in commission to Eric Freymond's management company between 2001 and 2009. This period corresponds to the time when the luxury group was secretly building its stake in its competitor.

Timeline of events

As the AFP recalled in December 2025, the fate of these shares is at the heart of a complex case with multiple twists and turns, set against a backdrop of historical rivalry between Hermès and LVMH, who had subsequently buried the hatchet.

• 2010: The rivalry between the two entities crystallised in 2010 when LVMH unveiled a 17 percent stake in Hermès, subsequently reaching up to 23 percent before a withdrawal agreement in 2014. Hermès described the move as a hostile takeover attempt, as recalled by Reuters.

• 2014: In September 2014, LVMH and Hermès International reached an agreement under the aegis of the President of the Paris Commercial Court. Then, in October 2015, a dismissal order was issued.

• 2025: In December 2025, in a new twist, Nicolas Puech, the saddler's heir, claimed to have been dispossessed of his shares in the family jewel, demanding 14 billion euros. Bernard Arnault's group, the parent company of many luxury heavyweights, denounced what it called “a clearly coordinated press campaign” that “targets the LVMH group,” according to an AFP dispatch.

• 2026: In May 2026, prosecutors investigated whether the shares were misappropriated for the benefit of LVMH. Alexandre Montavon, a Swiss lawyer who advised the group on the 2002 agreement, was also heard in the case, although no criminal charges were brought against him. According to his testimony, Nicolas Puech's advisor had proposed using the heir's accounts as a screen to buy shares from other family members, thereby concealing the identity of the final buyer.

In parallel, LVMH indicated that it paid 10 million euros to Eric Freymond in 2019 to settle a financial dispute related to these operations. “The latter accused LVMH of not having paid him fairly for his services rendered during the acquisition of Hermès shares,” Reuters specified.