Casino Brazil has finally announced an agreement with the Diniz family, bringing an end to the extreme tensions that arose between the two following the takeover of Grupo Pão de Açúcar (GPA) by Casino in 2012.
Abilio Diniz, Chairman of the Brazilian retailer, was unhappy with the terms of the sale, having attempted to merge operations with Casino rival Carrefour back in 2011.
In the wake of Casino’s acquisition, Diniz sold a major stake in January this year and joined one of GPA’s major suppliers, creating a difficult position of conflict of interest, as pointed out by Casino's CEO Jean-Charles Naouri.
According to Casino, 'In the spirit of mutual respect, M. Abilio Diniz, Chairman of Grupo Pão de Açúcar and Jean-Charles Naouri, Chairman of Groupe Casino, have agreed to settle their differences and to bring their partnership to a mutually beneficial conclusion so that each leader is free to move on to realize new opportunities'.
'This is an important moment in Brazilian commercial history since it has now been exactly 65 years - September 7th, 1948 - since the Diniz family founded the Grupo Pão de Açúcar, the largest retailer in Brazil'.
'Jean-Charles Naouri expresses his gratitude for all the many contributions of Mr. Diniz and his family and wishes him much success in his future endeavors. Mr. Naouri looks forward to keep growing GPA for the benefit of its customers, employees, shareholders and the Brazilian society'.
As part of the agreement, Diniz will step down as GPA Chairman in return for a swap of shares. This arrangement still needs to be ratified by the Brazilian Competition Authority. Eventually, the Diniz family will have no more influence over the company than any other shareholder under Brazilian law.
© 2013 - ESM: European Supermarket Magazine by Ellen Lunney
