French billionaire Vincent Bolloré and his son Cyrille are facing fresh legal trouble as a coalition of NGOs from five African countries filed fraud and corruption complaints against them in France. The groups, under the banner “Restitution for Africa,” allege that the Bolloré Group engaged in illegal dealings to secure lucrative port concessions in multiple African nations, later profiting from their sale in 2022.
“The end goal is for this money to be returned to the local populations,” said Christophe Marchand, a lawyer representing the NGOs.
The complaint, submitted to France’s Parquet National Financier (PNF), focuses on alleged corruption, influence peddling, and unlawful dealings that led to Bolloré Africa Logistics securing port concessions in Togo, Guinea, Ghana, Cameroon, and Ivory Coast.
Bolloré’s Controversial African Business Empire
Bolloré Africa Logistics was a major player in African transportation, employing over 20,000 people across 20 countries and operating 16 ports. In 2022, the company was sold to MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company for €5.7 billion ($6.2 billion). However, the NGOs claim this sale amounted to money laundering because the underlying contracts were allegedly secured through corrupt means.
The complaint builds upon an ongoing corruption investigation into Bolloré’s business practices. French authorities have previously scrutinised claims that his consulting firm illegally supported the 2010 presidential campaigns of Faure Gnassingbé in Togo and Alpha Condé in Guinea in exchange for control of port concessions in Lomé and Conakry.
Legal Troubles Mount for Bolloré
While Bolloré SE previously agreed to a €12 million settlement to resolve a PNF case against the company, the latest complaint intensifies legal scrutiny. French prosecutors in 2024 requested that Vincent Bolloré be tried on charges of corruption and complicity in breach of trust.
Marchand emphasised the importance of a deeper investigation: “The objective is to determine the amounts: what is the profit derived from the corrupt practices?”
The NGOs aim to invoke a 2021 French law that allows for the restitution of confiscated assets linked to corruption, ensuring that any recovered funds are redirected towards local development projects in the affected African nations.
Bolloré Yet to Respond
Vincent Bolloré, whose family’s net worth is estimated at $9.9 billion, has not publicly responded to the allegations. Representatives for Bolloré and the PNF also declined to comment on the new legal action.
