Hermès believes heir no longer holds shares worth $16.2 billion

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(Bloomberg) — The enigma surrounding Hermès shares worth about €14 billion ($16.2 billion) inherited by a member of the luxury goods company’s controlling family is finally seeing some glimmers of light.

Hermès International SCA believes the family member, Nicolas Puech, hasn’t had the shares in the Birkin bag maker for a while, Executive Chairman Axel Dumas said, adding a new twist to a protracted legal battle over their whereabouts — further complicated by the death last week of Puech’s former wealth manager.

“I’ve had the certainty for a long time that Nicolas Puech no longer holds his shares,” Dumas told reporters Wednesday on an earnings call, in his most elaborate public comments on the issue. “This is why we’ve started legal proceedings.” The executive said he doesn’t believe the shares can be recovered.

The dispute over Puech’s stake in Hermès has been among the most enduring mysteries in the fallout from one of France’s most high-profile corporate battles. More than a decade ago Bernard Arnault, luxury goods rival and founder of conglomerate LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, revealed he had stealthily amassed a stake in Hermès. Descendants controlling Hermès came together and successfully fought the unwelcome advance.

The fate of Puech’s shares was never clarified even after Arnault’s 2014 agreement with the Hermès clan to start unwinding his stake. The puzzle deepened in 2023, when Puech accused his former wealth adviser Eric Freymond of mishandling his holdings. Freymond died in Switzerland last week.

Puech, a fifth generation heir, and Freymond’s relationship had soured, leading to a court case in Geneva over the fortune, which was mostly tied to some 6 million shares in Hermès, one of the world’s most valuable luxury goods companies.

Dumas described Freymond’s death as “tragic” and “sad.”

Lawyers for Puech and Freymond couldn’t be reached for immediate comment.

The Hermès clan, which counts more than 100 members, is one of Europe’s richest families. Should Switzerland-based Puech still hold his stake, he would be the single largest investor in the purveyor of handbags and colorful silk scarves that was founded in 1837.

Dumas is a sixth generation descendant of the company’s founder. His late uncle Jean-Louis Dumas, who once led Hermès, was Puech’s cousin.