Malakoff Humanis: the social partners let go of the general director

The social partners at the helm of Malakoff Humanis, a heavyweight in supplementary health and retirement insurance, estimated this Thursday that their confidence in the group's general director Thomas Saunier was “shaken”, announcing “necessary decisions” for the beginning of November.

“After a broad discussion”, the members of the board of directors of Malakoff Humanis (10,500 employees) “note that confidence in the general director is shaken”, according to a press release from the group released in the evening.

“Aware of the consequences of the current situation on the group, its customers and its employees, the directors have agreed that the Malakoff Humanis authorities will take the necessary decisions at the beginning of November,” adds the press release, without further details.

“The majority of the board of directors does not maintain its confidence in the general director,” Rui Portal, national secretary of the CFDT, told AFP.

“It is certain that an exceptional board of directors will be convened under emergency procedure” at the beginning of November to draw the consequences, he explained.

In June, the headquarters of Malakoff Humanis (MH) was raided as part of an investigation opened by the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) for “active and passive corruption committed by an organized gang”.

The PNF is interested in the activities of Thomas Vendôme Investissement (TVI), a financial intermediary which acts as a business provider to fund management companies like the one used by MH to manage the billions of euros for which it is responsible, in its insurance activity.

Justice is seeking in particular to know whether TVI paid kickbacks or other benefits to MH managers so that the group entrusted funds to be managed by its clients.

With 10,500 employees, a turnover of 8.37 billion euros, and more than 72 billion euros in assets under management, Malakoff Humanis is a heavyweight in the complementary health, provident and savings sector, managed equally by the social partners.

Malakoff Humanis is also one of the pillars of Agirc-Arrco, the private supplementary pension system, of which it manages a small part of the reserves (estimated in total at 90 billion euros).