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Wendel: From 18th Century Steel to 21st Century Private Equity
How a 321-Year-Old French Industrial Dynasty Survived Nationalization, Reinvented Itself as a Private Equity Pioneer, and Now Transforms into an Asset Management Powerhouse
I. Introduction: The House That Survived Everything
Picture the mist-shrouded valleys of Lorraine in 1704, where smoke billows from iron forges and the rhythmic clang of hammers echoes across the hillsides. It was here, on May 8th of that year, that Jean-Martin Wendel—a former officer of Louis XIV—signed the papers to acquire the Rodolphe forge at Hayange. What he could not have known was that he was planting the seeds of a dynasty that would survive revolutions, world wars, nationalization, and financial crises to become one of Europe's most influential investment houses over three centuries later.
For more than three centuries, Wendel has been supported by the Wendel family, its core shareholder group. The family shareholders are grouped in Wendel-Participations SE, which owns 39.3% of Wendel's share capital. Wendel-Participations SE is owned by approximately 1,200 members of the Wendel family and legal entities.
This is a story of radical reinvention. The company that once produced 72% of France's crude steel now operates as a hybrid investment firm, combining traditional principal investments with a rapidly growing third-party asset management platform. As of September 30, 2025, the Group manages €40 billion on behalf of third-party investors, and approximately €5.3 billion invested for its own account.
The central question is deceptively simple: How does a family business survive for 321 years? The answer lies in Wendel's repeated willingness to abandon its core identity when circumstances demand it—from ironmakers to steel barons, from steel barons to diversified industrialists, from industrialists to private equity pioneers, and now to asset managers.
Wendel is a leading European listed investment firm operating with a dual business model focused on long-term principal investments and private asset management for third-party clients. As a pioneer in the private equity sector for nearly five decades, the firm leverages its permanent capital structure to act as an active, long-term shareholder, supporting the growth of leading companies.
What makes Wendel remarkable isn't just its longevity—it's the pattern of transformation that repeats across centuries. Each generation faced an existential crisis that would have destroyed a lesser dynasty. Each time, the family chose adaptation over extinction.
II. The de Wendel Dynasty: Origins & Steel Empire (1704–1970s)
The Founding: A Military Man Turns Industrialist
The story begins with a soldier's gamble. Jean-Martin Wendel had spent his career serving the Sun King, but in 1704, he saw a different kind of opportunity. Founded in the Lorraine region in the east of France in 1704, the Wendel Group developed its business over more than 300 years in diverse industrial sectors, with a focus on steelmaking.
The Lorraine region was blessed with iron ore deposits and forested hillsides that provided both raw materials and fuel for smelting. Jean-Martin's purchase of the Hayange forge was strategic—he positioned himself at the intersection of abundant resources and growing demand from a France engaged in near-constant warfare.
What followed was an industrial empire built through technical innovation and canny business sense. From 1704 to 1870, the Group took advantage of the major inventions that accelerated the development of its iron and steel production: iron smelted with coke, widespread use of blast furnaces and rolling mills, the development of railroads, and other advancements. With the adoption of the "Thomas process", which allowed for the manufacture of steel from Lorraine ore, the family companies—Les Petits-Fils de François de Wendel & Cie established in 1871 and Wendel & Cie founded in 1880—ranked among Europe's leading steel producers.
Rise to Industrial Dominance
By 1870, the Wendel operations had transformed from a modest forge into an industrial colossus. The numbers tell a story of relentless expansion: the company employed some 7,000 workers and produced 134,500 tons of pig iron and 112,500 tons of iron annually, making it France's largest iron company.
The Thomas process proved particularly crucial. Before its adoption, the phosphorus content in Lorraine ore made it unsuitable for high-quality steel production. The breakthrough allowed Wendel to exploit deposits that competitors couldn't use, creating a sustainable competitive advantage that would last for decades.
The Peak Years: Steel Kings of France
The twentieth century brought devastation and resurrection in equal measure. Two world wars ravaged Lorraine's production facilities. In the 20th century, hard hit by two world wars that devastated Lorraine production facilities, the Group recovered and began to grow again. The creation of the Sollac production cooperatives in 1948, then Solmer in 1969, helped meet the growing demand for sheet steel. Between 1950 and 1973, the Group was at its peak. In 1975, it produced 72% of France's raw steel.
Think about that statistic: a single family-controlled enterprise producing nearly three-quarters of an entire nation's steel output. The Wendels weren't just industrialists—they were nation-builders, their furnaces literally forging the infrastructure of modern France.
The Seillière-Wendel Connection
The dynasty's survival would ultimately depend on strategic marriages that brought fresh blood and new perspectives. Ernest-Antoine Seillière de Laborde is a French entrepreneur and the heir to the Wendel empire. His connection to the family came through generations of intermarriage between the Seillière and Wendel families.
Florentin Seillière had been one of the early backers of Wendel operations. The pattern of strategic alliances through marriage would prove crucial—it wasn't just wealth that passed between generations, but also networks, perspectives, and crucially, the business acumen needed to navigate an increasingly complex industrial landscape.
For investors today, the early history of Wendel illustrates a crucial principle: family-controlled businesses that survive multiple centuries do so not through rigid adherence to tradition, but through continuous adaptation. The company that Jean-Martin Wendel founded in 1704 bore almost no operational resemblance to the steel empire of 1975—yet the family maintained control throughout, always positioning themselves at the intersection of capital and opportunity.
III. The Crisis & Forced Reinvention: Nationalization (1974–1977)
The Fall of French Steel
The year 1974 marked the end of an era. In 1974, the sudden rise in oil prices led to a widespread economic crisis. The French steel industry faced a serious downturn. Fixed steel prices and investment in modernization strangled the industry financially.
The crisis wasn't merely cyclical—it was structural. European steel producers faced competition from newly industrializing nations with lower labor costs and newer facilities. The French government's response was nationalization: if private industry couldn't maintain the steel sector, the state would.
For the Wendels, nationalization represented something far more personal than a corporate restructuring. This was the forced liquidation of 270 years of family identity. The company, still directed by the family, suffered in 1978 the great turmoil that weakened European steel-making, and the entire de Wendel empire was nationalized without indemnity.
No indemnity. After nearly three centuries of building French industry, the family received nothing for their core business. It was, in many ways, a death sentence for the dynasty as it had existed.
The Pivot to Investment: CGIP is Born
But the Wendels had survived revolutions and world wars. They would survive nationalization too.
In 1977, the Group gained new momentum and began to diversify into new technology and service sectors, such as IT services, quality control and healthcare. In 2002, Marine-Wendel and CGIP merged to form Wendel Investissement, renamed Wendel in 2007.
All non-steel assets were grouped into a new entity: Compagnie Générale d'Industrie et de Participations (CGIP). This wasn't just a corporate restructuring—it was a philosophical transformation. The Wendels would no longer be operators of industrial assets; they would be investors in them.
At the end of the 1970s, the French government nationalized all of the Group's steel production activities. Wendel then turned its focus to long-term investing, establishing itself as a pioneer in private equity.
The pivot was audacious. Private equity barely existed as an asset class in 1970s France. The Wendels were essentially inventing a new business model: using their permanent capital base and industrial expertise to take meaningful stakes in companies and help them grow over extended time horizons.
This shift marked the inception of Wendel's focus on long-term investments, positioning it as an early pioneer in private equity in France. While American firms like KKR were just beginning to develop leveraged buyout strategies, the Wendels were building something different—a patient capital model that drew on their centuries-old tradition of multi-generational thinking.
For today's investors, the nationalization crisis offers a crucial lesson: the apparent destruction of a business model can actually liberate a company to pursue better opportunities. The Wendels' steel assets were worth nothing after nationalization, but the skills, networks, and capital that remained proved far more valuable in the emerging field of private equity.
IV. The Seillière Era: Rebuilding the Empire (1976–2013)
Enter Ernest-Antoine Seillière
In 1976, a 38-year-old graduate of the École nationale d'administration named Ernest-Antoine Seillière joined what remained of the Wendel empire. His timing seemed terrible—he was joining a company that had just been gutted by nationalization. But Seillière saw opportunity where others saw disaster.
He graduated from the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris, studying in law and a former pupil of the École nationale d'administration. He was CEO of Wendel, a holding company for the CGIP, chairman of the Supervisory Board from 2002 to March 2013.
His background was perfect for the challenge ahead. Having passed through the prestigious ENA, served at the Quai d'Orsay (France's foreign ministry), worked in several ministerial cabinets, and studied at Harvard, Seillière brought both political connections and international perspective to a company desperately needing both.
He entered the Wendel Group in 1976 where he held several successive positions, including General Manager (1978-1987) then CEO of CGIP (1987-2002). The rebuilding was methodical and patient—exactly the kind of multi-generational thinking that had characterized the Wendel family for centuries.
The MEDEF Interlude: Baron of the Bosses
Seillière's influence extended far beyond Wendel. By resigning with a bang from the National Council of French Employers (CNPF) after the decision in 1997 of the socialist government to lower the legal working time to 35 hours, Jean Gandois had estimated that it now needed a "killer" to engage in this battle: it was done with the election of Baron Seillière.
Vice President of the CNPF and member of its executive council from 1988 to 1997, President of the economic commission of the CNPF from 1988 to 1994, he became president of Medef (formerly CNPF) from December 1997 to 5 June 2005.
The 35-hour workweek battle defined French politics in the late 1990s, and Seillière became the face of business opposition to the socialist government's labor reforms. His transformation of the CNPF into Medef (Mouvement des Entreprises de France) represented a modernization of French employer representation.
The 2002 Merger: Creating Modern Wendel
The definitive restructuring came in 2002. In 2002, Marine-Wendel and CGIP merged to form Wendel Investissement, renamed Wendel in 2007.
A key restructuring occurred when Marine-Wendel merged with CGIP—established in 1977 to hold non-steel assets—forming Wendel Investissement. This merger consolidated the group's holdings, emphasizing investments in medium-sized companies across diverse sectors. By 2003, over 80% of the portfolio consisted of unlisted assets. The entity was renamed Wendel in 2007, adopting the legal form of a Société Européenne (SE).
Value Creation Under Seillière
The results spoke for themselves. In interviews, Seillière proudly stated that the business was worth 50 million in 1976 and was worth a hundred times more by 2015. A 100x return over four decades—compounding at roughly 13% annually through multiple economic cycles, a real estate crash, the dot-com bubble, and the 2008 financial crisis.
Since 1977, Wendel has invested in a great number of successful industrial companies, including Bureau Veritas, Saint-Gobain, Capgemini, CarnaudMetalbox (Crown Holdings Inc.), BioMĂ©rieux, Reynolds, Stallergenes, Wheelabrator Allevard, Valeo, Afflelou, Editis, Deutsch Group, Legrand and Allied Universal.
This portfolio reads like a who's who of French industrial champions. But the real achievement wasn't just picking winners—it was building an institution capable of sustained performance across management transitions and economic cycles.
For investors, the Seillière era demonstrated that permanent capital structures can generate superior long-term returns by enabling truly patient investing. Unlike traditional private equity funds with 7-10 year holding periods, Wendel could hold investments indefinitely, allowing compound growth to work over decades rather than years.
V. Bureau Veritas: The Crown Jewel Investment
The Initial Investment: €25 Million Changes Everything
Sometimes the best investments are the ones nobody notices at the time. In 1995, Wendel made what seemed like a modest bet on a testing and certification company that few outside France had heard of.
Wendel has gradually increased its holding in Bureau Veritas. When Wendel made its initial €25 million investment in 1995, obtaining 19% of the share capital, Bureau Veritas generated annual revenue of less than €400 million.
Bureau Veritas wasn't glamorous—it inspected ships, tested products, and certified quality standards. But Wendel saw something others missed: a business model built on trust. As global supply chains grew more complex, companies and governments needed independent verification that products and processes met standards. Bureau Veritas was positioned to become the arbiter of quality in an increasingly interconnected world.
The IPO Success: Crystallizing Value
By October 2007, Wendel's patience had paid off spectacularly. In October 2007, the initial public offering of Bureau Veritas brought 1.2 billion euros. Wendel has stayed the majority shareholder with 63%.
The €1.2 billion IPO crystallized enormous value while allowing Wendel to retain control. This strategy—taking companies public while maintaining significant ownership—became a hallmark of the Wendel approach. The public listing provided liquidity and external validation of value, while continued control allowed Wendel to maintain its long-term strategic influence.
The Spectacular Returns
Since its initial investment of €931 million in Bureau Veritas (including subsequent investments to increase its stake), Wendel has received approximately €4 billion in proceeds from disposals—while still retaining a substantial ownership position.
Bureau Veritas posted a record free cash flow of €843.3 million (+27.9% year-on year). Bureau Veritas contributed very positively to Net Asset Value, as end of December 2024, its 20-day average share price was up strongly YTD (+32.5%).
Even today, Bureau Veritas remains one of Wendel's most significant holdings. Wendel announced on April 5, 2024, that it had successfully completed the sale of 40.5 million shares in Bureau Veritas, representing c.9% of the Company's share capital, for total proceeds of approximately €1.1 billion. The transaction was carried out at a price of €27.127, or a discount of 3% from the previous day's share price.
On March 12, 2025, Wendel realized a successful placement of Bureau Veritas shares as part of a prepaid 3-year forward sale representing approximately 6.7% of Bureau Veritas share capital and increased its financial flexibility by reducing the pro forma loan-to-value ratio to approximately 17%. The transaction immediately generated net cash proceeds of approximately €750M to Wendel.
The Bureau Veritas investment exemplifies Wendel's approach at its best: identify a business with structural tailwinds, invest at a reasonable valuation, provide operational support over decades, and harvest returns gradually while maintaining strategic influence. From €25 million in 1995 to billions in proceeds while still holding a significant stake, Bureau Veritas demonstrates the power of patient, permanent capital.
VI. The Legrand-KKR LBO & Activist Investing Phase (2002–2008)
The Legrand Partnership: A Record-Breaking LBO
While Bureau Veritas showed Wendel's patient side, the early 2000s revealed a more aggressive dimension. When the tech bubble collapsed, denting Wendel's worth at the start of the decade, Seillière and his protégé, CEO Jean-Bernard Lafonta, borrowed heavily to make a series of bold investments and once more reinvent the company.
In December 2002 French investment office Wendel and Private Equity firm KKR acquired Legrand, a global leader in low-voltage electric products, in a €4.8 billion leveraged buyout. The deal, the largest-ever LBO in Europe at the time, was the result of a forced divestiture by competitor Schneider Electric, whose attempt to merge with Legrand was blocked on antitrust grounds.
The Legrand deal was transformational. Wendel teamed up with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. on the €3.6 billion leveraged buyout of electrical equipment maker Legrand in 2002. This partnership with the legendary American buyout firm signaled Wendel's arrival on the global private equity stage.
Wendel acquired Legrand in 2002 from one of its competitors, in equal shares with a co-shareholder, KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co). Positioned in a highly fragmented global market with high entry barriers, Legrand is a leader specializing in the development of innovative solutions in the electrical, home automation, lighting management and energy efficiency segments. From 2002 to 2013, Wendel made a major contribution to Legrand's operational improvement and development, notably through a successful IPO in 2006 and more than 30 acquisitions, as well as a successful management succession.
The Saint-Gobain Activist Play—A Pivotal Mistake
Emboldened by Legrand's success, Wendel made a fateful decision. Late in 2007, the firm turned activist, buying a 21.5 percent stake in French building materials maker Saint-Gobain and pressing for steps to boost returns.
By contrast, the investment in Saint-Gobain, the world's largest maker of building materials by sales, has been a big drain. The company's chairman, Jean-Louis Beffa, has put up stiff resistance to its new activist investor. A heavyweight in corporate France, Beffa is often referred to as "the pope" of French industry; he served as CEO of the company for more than two decades before moving up to the chairman's post in June 2007. Beffa resisted Lafonta's calls for board seats for months.
The timing couldn't have been worse. Wendel was building its Saint-Gobain position just as the global financial system was beginning to crack. The rout on global stock markets has hammered the value of most of the investments and, consequently, Wendel's stock. The plunge in Saint-Gobain's stock price has given Wendel a paper loss of €3 billion on its 21.5 percent stake, which it paid €5.5 billion to acquire between September 2007 and April. Wendel's stock was trading at €39.46 early this month, down 72.8 percent from its peak level.
The 2008 Crisis Impact
Wendel's share price grew more than fourfold from the start of 2004 to a peak of €145.25 in July 2007, giving it a market capitalization of €7 billion. Within 18 months, the stock had collapsed. Standard & Poor's downgraded Wendel to junk status, dropping it one notch to BB+, citing its high debt-to-net-asset-value ratio of more than 40 percent.
The family's participation fell from a peak at end of 2006 (€2.281 billion) to collapse at end of 2008 (€620 million). Despite the general stock market crisis of 2008, and that which particularly affected the group at the same time, the evolution of the 2000s remained ultimately favorable over the full decade.
But the Saint-Gobain adventure taught a painful lesson: even patient capital must respect leverage constraints. The debt taken on to finance the Saint-Gobain stake nearly destroyed the company that had survived nationalization, two world wars, and the French Revolution.
The Legrand Exit: A Successful Conclusion
In June 2013, after 11 years as reference shareholder, Wendel completes the successful sale of its remaining stake in Legrand. After eleven years in the company's capital, Wendel sold its remaining shares (14.4 million, or 5.4% of the capital, at a price of €36 per share) in Legrand in June 2013 in order to materialize the success of its investment and undertake other projects. Wendel's investment in Legrand generated an overall IRR of 19% and a multiple of 3.9x over eleven years.
A 19% IRR and 3.9x multiple over eleven years—in an investment that included the 2008 financial crisis—demonstrated that Wendel's core model worked. The Legrand success provided capital for future investments and validated the partnership approach with world-class operators.
VII. Family Scandal & Corporate Governance Crisis (2007–2013)
The Management Enrichment Controversy
Even as Wendel was battling external crises, an internal conflict was brewing that would ultimately send executives to court.
In June 2008, Sophie Boegner, Ernest-Antoine Seillière's cousin, denounced the conditions through which 15 Wendel managers invested in 4.7% of the company's stock in May 2007. In August 2011, the public prosecutor dismissed the case.
The initial dismissal didn't end the matter. In 2007, through a complicated and opaque financial arrangement called "Solfur," fourteen Wendel executives, including Ernest-Antoine Seillière, pocketed 324 million euros without declaring it to the tax authorities. Sophie Boegner filed a complaint against Seillière and the then director of Wendel, Jean-Bernard Lafonta. She was furious that Seillière and his associates had enriched themselves on the sly at the expense of family shareholders.
Ernest-Antoine Seillière, 84, has been on trial since January 17 in Paris alongside thirteen other people, suspected of having participated in May 2007 in a fraudulent scheme aimed at evading taxation on a total of 315 million euros capital gains from a profit-sharing program within Wendel.
The Tax Fraud Conviction (2022)
The case wound through the French legal system for years. Finally, in April 2022, judgment came.
In 2022, he was given a three-year suspended prison sentence along with the maximum fine allowed by law at that time for his participation in a tax evasion scheme at the Wendell group in 2007. He was convicted of tax fraud in 2022.
The former president of Medef, Ernest-Antoine Seillière, was sentenced on Wednesday in Paris to a three-year suspended prison sentence and a fine of 37,500 euros, found guilty of tax evasion for having participated in 2007 within the Wendel company in an ultra-sophisticated financial arrangement aimed at deceiving the tax authorities. The former boss of the investment company, Jean-Bernard Lafonta, was given a four-year suspended prison sentence. Eleven other executives and a former tax lawyer were given sentences ranging from suspended fines to suspended prison sentences plus a fine of 37,500 euros.
The court found that the arrangement had "misguided" a legal device designed by the legislator to facilitate corporate restructuring and economic activity. Seillière had received 79 million euros through this operation.
Leadership Transition
The scandal accelerated leadership change. On the occasion of the publication of its results, Wendel announced the departure of Ernest-Antoine Seillière from the presidency of the supervisory board, who, at 75, would become honorary president of the group. He was replaced by François de Wendel—bringing family governance full circle with a return to direct Wendel family leadership of the supervisory board.
The governance crisis, while painful, ultimately strengthened Wendel's institutional framework. The company implemented stricter controls and clearer separation between family ownership and management. The scandal served as a reminder that even the most storied dynasties must maintain rigorous ethical standards to survive.
VIII. The Deleveraging & Recovery Phase (2009–2022)
Post-Crisis Stabilization
After the near-death experience of 2008-2009, Wendel embarked on a systematic deleveraging campaign. The priority was clear: reduce debt, restore creditworthiness, and rebuild optionality.
As of December 31, 2014, all of the debt financing the Saint-Gobain acquisition had been repaid and no bank line of credit had been drawn. In April 2013, the rating agency Standard & Poor's raised its long-term rating on Wendel from "BB" to "BB+", with stable outlook.
The journey from junk status back to investment grade took years of disciplined capital management. Wendel sold non-core assets, harvested gains from successful investments like Legrand, and resisted the temptation to deploy capital aggressively in a still-recovering market.
Portfolio Evolution and Geographic Expansion
With its balance sheet stabilized, Wendel began diversifying geographically and sectorally. In December 2013, Wendel realized its first investment in Japan, through Oranje Nassau Développement, with the acquisition of Nippon Oil Pump Co., Ltd. (NOP). Wendel has invested ¥3.2bn (c.€24M), subject to price adjustments, and holds 98% of the company, alongside management.
In November 2013, Wendel pursues its strategy of investment in Africa, becoming a shareholder of the pan-African group Saham, based in Morocco.
The geographic expansion reflected a maturing investment thesis: as European markets became more competitive and valuations rose, Wendel needed to find opportunities in less-trafficked markets. Japan, Africa, and the United States became new hunting grounds.
In April 2014, Wendel increases its total investment in IHS to $475 million. IHS Towers, the African telecom infrastructure company, represented a bet on the continent's digital transformation—the kind of long-duration theme that suited Wendel's permanent capital structure.
The Crisis Prevention Institute Acquisition
In October 2019, Wendel signed an agreement to acquire U.S. company Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI) from San Francisco-based FFL Partners in a deal with an enterprise value of $910 million. This acquisition signaled Wendel's growing focus on the U.S. market and specialty training services—sectors with recurring revenue and defensive characteristics.
New Leadership: Laurent Mignon Takes the Helm
The transition to a new era of leadership crystallized with the appointment of Laurent Mignon as Group CEO.
Laurent Mignon has been CEO of Groupe BPCE since June 1, 2018. After graduating from HEC in 1986 and from the Stanford Executive Program, Laurent Mignon worked for Banque Indosuez for over 10 years, initially in capital markets, then in corporate & investment banking. He was appointed to the AGF Executive Committee in 1998, then as Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Banque AGF, AGF Asset Management and AGF Immobilier (Real Estate) in 2002, then in charge of life insurance & financial services and credit insurance in 2003. In 2006, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Executive Committee. From 2007 to 2009, he was a managing partner at Oddo & Cie. From 2009 to 2018, Laurent Mignon has served as Chief Executive Officer of Natixis and has been a member of the Management Board of BPCE since 2013.
Laurent Mignon is Wendel's Group CEO since December 2nd, 2022, and Chairman of the Board of Bureau Veritas since June 22nd, 2023.
Mignon's background in financial services—particularly his experience building and transforming complex financial institutions—made him ideally suited for Wendel's next strategic evolution: the pivot to asset management.
IX. The 2023 Strategic Pivot: Third-Party Asset Management
The New Business Model: From Principal Investor to Platform
In March 2023, Wendel announced what would become its most significant strategic shift since the post-nationalization pivot of 1977. In 2023, Wendel initiated a strategic shift into third-party asset management of private assets, alongside its historical principal investment activities.
The logic was compelling: Wendel possessed deep expertise in private market investing, a 300-year reputation for stewardship, and relationships with institutional investors worldwide. Why not monetize these capabilities by managing third-party capital in addition to its own?
The model would transform Wendel's economics. Principal investments generate returns through value appreciation and dividends—lumpy, unpredictable, and entirely dependent on market conditions. Asset management generates fees based on assets under management—recurring, predictable, and somewhat insulated from market volatility.
The IK Partners Acquisition: Building the Foundation
The 383 million euros will be paid by Wendel in two stages: 255 million euros today, following the transaction closing, 128 million euros on May 14, 2027, subject to certain conditions.
The partnership with IK is a major step in the deployment of our new strategy announced in 2023. It will form the foundation of the private asset management division we are building. Given its financial strength, Wendel has the resources to support IK Partners' development over the long term, and invest in its funds to gain access to the results of successful value creation strategies implemented by its teams. Executing this ambitious strategy will accelerate Wendel's diversification, boost recurring cash flow generation and enhance our attractiveness as an investor and listed company.
IK Partners is one of Europe's most recognized PE firms, with teams across seven Northern European countries focusing on the mid-market segment. The company invests in the Business Services, Healthcare, Consumer and Industrials sectors in France, Benelux, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Scandinavia and the UK. IK Partners manages nearly €12 billion of private assets on behalf of third-party investors and has invested in over 180 companies since its creation. The Company's Investment teams have an excellent track record, having collectively achieved an average gross annual Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of around 26% for the 116 operations completed since 2012.
As part of this initial transaction, Wendel will invest a total of 383 million euros, or c. 12.5 times the estimated 2024 pre-tax Fee Related Earnings ("FRE"). Wendel Group is also entitled to 20% of carried interest generated on all future funds raised by IK.
The Monroe Capital Deal—A Transformational Acquisition
If IK Partners established the foundation, the Monroe Capital acquisition transformed Wendel into a truly diversified asset management platform.
Acquisition of Monroe Capital LLC dramatically expands Wendel's Asset Management platform and rebalances its business model towards more recurring cash flows and growth. Wendel's Asset Management platform will represent c.€31 billion of AuM in private assets and is expected to generate c.€160 million of Fee Related Earnings and c.€185 million of total pre-tax profit in 2025.
A key feature of the planned partnership will be the commitment of significant capital by Wendel to support Monroe Capital's present and future funds, as well as the development of new strategies. As part of the initial transaction, which is expected to be finalized in the first half of 2025, Wendel shall invest $1.13 billion, to acquire 75% of Monroe Capital's shares together with rights to c.20% of the carried interest generated on past and future funds.
Monroe Capital LLC is a premier asset management firm specializing in private credit markets across various strategies, including direct lending, technology finance, venture debt, alternative credit solutions, structured credit, real estate and equity. Since 2004, the firm has been successfully providing capital solutions to clients in the U.S. and Canada.
Wendel completed the definitive partnership agreement including the acquisition, together with AXA IM Prime, of 75% of Monroe Capital LLC, and a sponsoring program of $800 million to accelerate Monroe Capital's growth, and will invest in GP commitment for up to $200 million. As part of the initial transaction, Wendel has invested $1.133 billion to acquire 72% of Monroe Capital's shares together with rights to c.20% of the carried interest.
The New Scale: €40+ Billion Under Management
As of June 30, 2025, Wendel manages 39 billion euros on behalf of third-party investors, and c.6.2 billion euros invested in its principal investments activity.
The transformation has been rapid. Over the first half of 2025, the Wendel Asset Management platform (IK Partners and Monroe Capital), focused on the midmarket private markets, registered particularly strong levels of activity, generating a total of €152.0 million in Management fees and others, up 355% vs. H1 2024. As a consequence, the consolidated Fee Related Earnings of the platform amounted to €59.9 million in H1 2025, up 318% vs last year.
The Committed Advisors Deal: Adding Secondaries
The platform continues to expand. Wendel announced on October 24, 2025, that it had entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire a controlling stake in Committed Advisors from its founding partners, who would also reinvest all of their net proceeds in Committed Advisors funds as part of the envisaged transaction. The agreement to acquire Committed Advisors was signed on November 24, 2025. Subject to the satisfaction of the conditions for completion (including regulatory approvals), the transaction is expected to be completed in Q1 2026.
With this partnership, Committed Advisors would become the secondary market specialist within Wendel Investment Managers (Wendel's asset management platform), which already covers buyout through IK Partners and private credit through Monroe Capital. Committed Advisors will benefit from the platform's resources and support to consolidate its development and keep generating growth in a secondary market that has more than doubled in size since 2021. Following this transaction, Wendel Investment Managers would reach over €46bn in Assets Under Management and €200million in Fee Related Earnings on a pro forma basis in 2026.
X. Current Portfolio Deep Dive
Principal Investments Today
Regarding its principal investment strategy, the Group invests in companies which are leaders in their field, such as ACAMS, Bureau Veritas, Crisis Prevention Institute, Globeducate, IHS Towers, Scalian, Stahl and Tarkett.
The principal investment portfolio reflects Wendel's evolved thesis: focus on business services with recurring revenues, strong market positions, and global growth opportunities.
Bureau Veritas remains the anchor, now representing approximately 21% of Wendel's stake and 41% of voting rights after recent sales. The testing and certification giant continues to generate strong cash flows, posting record free cash flow of €843.3 million in 2024.
Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI) provides training services with a subscription-like business model. On January 21st, 2025, CPI announced the acquisition of Verge, a Norwegian leader in behaviour intervention and training. The company is executing a roll-up strategy within its niche.
ACAMS, the global leader in anti-money laundering training and certifications, generated 2024 revenue of $102.1 million, demonstrating stability in the compliance training space.
Globeducate, acquired in October 2024, represents Wendel's bet on international K-12 education—a sector with demographic tailwinds and premium pricing power.
IHS Towers provides exposure to African telecom infrastructure, while Tarkett (flooring) and Stahl (specialty coatings) represent more traditional industrial positions.
Scalian, a digital transformation consultancy, has faced headwinds from market slowdown. The impact of impairment on investments was limited over the period, as the reversal of the impairment on Tarkett Participation was offset by the impairment recognized on Scalian, as a result of the slowdown in its markets.
Asset Management Platform
The asset management platform now encompasses three distinct strategies:
- IK Partners: European mid-market buyouts (51% owned)
- Monroe Capital: U.S. lower middle market private credit (72% owned)
- Committed Advisors (pending): Global secondaries specialist (56% to be owned)
Over 2024, IK Partners had particularly strong activity, generating a total of €163.3 million in revenue, up 31% YoY, and a strong growth of FRE (Fee Related Earnings) to €69.9 million. Total Assets under Management (€13.8 billion, of which €3 billion of Dry Powder) grew by 24% since the beginning of the year.
XI. Investment Case: Bull vs. Bear
The Bull Case
1. Asset Management Platform Creates Recurring Earnings
The transformation from pure-play principal investor to hybrid model fundamentally changes Wendel's earnings quality. In 2025, it should generate, on a full year basis, c.€455 million revenues, c.€160 million pre-tax FRE, and has the objective to reach €150 million (Wendel share) in pre-tax FRE by 2027.
Fee-related earnings are substantially more predictable than investment gains. As the platform scales, these earnings should compound, creating a floor under valuation even in difficult markets.
2. Massive Discount to NAV
Compared to the last 20-day average share price as of June 30, the discount to the fully diluted NAV per share was -48.4% as of June 30, 2025.
A 48% discount to NAV for a company with improving earnings quality and a 320-year track record is extraordinary. The discount implies either (a) massive hidden problems in the portfolio or (b) market misunderstanding of the asset management transformation.
3. Family Alignment and Permanent Capital
The 1,200-member Wendel family owns 39% of shares through Wendel-Participations. This creates genuine long-term alignment—the family's wealth is concentrated in Wendel, creating powerful incentives for value creation rather than short-term financial engineering.
4. Bureau Veritas Optionality
The forward sale structure on Bureau Veritas shares provides continued upside exposure while generating immediate liquidity. If Bureau Veritas continues its strong performance, Wendel participates in the appreciation through its call spread position.
The Bear Case
1. Execution Risk in Asset Management Build-Out
Building an asset management platform from scratch is notoriously difficult. Integration risks exist with both IK Partners and Monroe Capital. Key-person risk is elevated—these firms depend on their founding teams remaining engaged and motivated.
2. Private Credit Cycle Concerns
Monroe Capital's focus on lower middle market private credit exposes Wendel to potential defaults in an economic downturn. The private credit boom of recent years may face a reckoning as base rates normalize and weaker credits face refinancing challenges.
3. Currency and Geographic Exposure
Wendel reports in euros but has substantial U.S. dollar exposure through Monroe Capital and other investments. FX had a negative impact of -4.7€ per share over the second quarter due to the dollar evolution vs. euro.
4. NAV Methodology Opacity
Unlisted investments are valued using peer multiples—a methodology that can lag market reality during downturns. The 43% of Gross Asset Value in unlisted assets introduces valuation uncertainty.
Competitive Analysis: Porter's Five Forces
Supplier Power (Low): Wendel's suppliers are largely capital markets—bond and equity investors who have numerous alternatives but face limited switching costs.
Buyer Power (Moderate): Institutional investors choosing asset managers have many alternatives, but switching costs (GP relationships, fund lock-ups) are meaningful.
Threat of Substitution (Moderate): Public market alternatives (ETFs, mutual funds) offer lower fees, but private market exposure is increasingly demanded by institutions.
Threat of New Entrants (Low-Moderate): Building a private market platform requires capital, track record, and relationships—all barriers that favor incumbents like Wendel.
Competitive Rivalry (High): The asset management industry is highly competitive, with pressure on fees and constant fundraising requirements.
Hamilton Helmer's 7 Powers Analysis
Scale Economies: Limited at current size; Wendel remains small compared to global alternatives giants.
Network Effects: Modest—LP relationships create some network effects, but not winner-take-all dynamics.
Counter-Positioning: Strong—Wendel's permanent capital structure (no fund life constraints) enables investment approaches that traditional PE funds cannot replicate.
Switching Costs: Moderate in principal investments (long holding periods), lower in asset management (LPs can redirect capital at vintage boundaries).
Branding: Strong—three centuries of history and the Wendel family reputation create differentiation in European markets.
Cornered Resource: The family shareholder base provides patient, aligned capital unavailable to most competitors.
Process Power: Developing—operational capabilities in mid-market investing are being systematically embedded across the platform.
XII. Key Metrics to Watch
For investors tracking Wendel's transformation, three KPIs merit close attention:
1. Fee-Related Earnings (FRE) Growth Rate
FRE represents the recurring earnings from asset management—management fees minus operating expenses. This metric captures the quality transformation of Wendel's business model. Target: 20%+ annual growth as acquisitions are integrated and organic growth compounds.
2. NAV Discount
The discount to Net Asset Value reflects market skepticism about Wendel's transformation and/or concern about hidden risks. Persistent discounts above 40% suggest the market isn't crediting the asset management transformation. Watch for: Discount compression as FRE becomes a larger share of overall value.
3. Assets Under Management (AUM) and Fundraising
AUM growth—particularly organic growth through successful fundraising—validates the platform strategy. The Wendel Asset Management Platform has known a Strong Momentum in terms of fund raising with €4.3 billion raised over the semester, without any sponsor money committed by Wendel.
XIII. Conclusion: What Three Centuries Teach Us
The Wendel story offers a masterclass in corporate survival. From iron forges in 1704 to asset management platforms in 2025, the company has reinvented itself at least four times: iron to steel, steel to diversified industry, diversified industry to private equity, and now private equity to asset management.
What explains this longevity? Three factors stand out:
First, the permanent capital structure. Unlike private equity funds with finite lives, Wendel can hold investments indefinitely. This enables truly long-term thinking and avoids forced selling at inopportune times.
Second, family alignment without family management. The Wendel family provides patient ownership through Wendel-Participations, but day-to-day operations are run by professional managers. This structure captures the benefits of family ownership (long-term orientation, concentrated stakes) while avoiding the pitfalls (nepotism, talent limitations).
Third, willingness to kill sacred cows. When steel became untenable, the family abandoned 270 years of industrial heritage. When principal investing alone proved insufficient, they built an asset management platform. Each generation recognized when the old model had run its course and pivoted before it was too late.
Today, Wendel trades at roughly half its net asset value, implying either massive hidden problems or substantial market mispricing. The asset management transformation—if successful—should generate recurring earnings that support a premium multiple, not a persistent discount.
Ordinary dividend of €4.70 per share for 2024, up +17.5% compared to 2023, to be proposed at the Annual Shareholders' Meeting on May 15, 2025. This dividend level takes into account the first partial integration of Asset management activities into Wendel in 2024, which will be mechanically higher in 2025.
The introduction of interim dividends—paid for the first time in November 2025—signals management's confidence in recurring cash generation and commitment to shareholder returns.
After 321 years, the Wendel family has proven one thing conclusively: survival requires continuous adaptation. The question for today's investors is whether the current transformation—from French private equity pioneer to global asset management platform—represents another successful pivot or a bridge too far.
History suggests betting against the Wendels has been a losing proposition.
Myth vs. Reality Box:
| Consensus View | Reality |
|---|---|
| "Wendel is just a French holding company" | Wendel is transforming into a global asset manager with €40bn+ AUM across private equity, private credit, and secondaries |
| "The NAV discount reflects fair value" | The 48% discount doesn't account for recurring FRE worth €160m+/year at acquisition multiples of 15-20x |
| "Family ownership creates governance risk" | 1,200 family members own through a structured vehicle with professional management; governance improved post-scandal |
| "Bureau Veritas concentration risk" | Progressive reduction through sales; forward sale structure maintains upside exposure while reducing concentration |
Material Regulatory/Legal Note: The 2022 tax fraud convictions of former leadership represent a resolved legal matter; all defendants received suspended sentences. Current management was not involved in the 2007 arrangements that led to the prosecution.
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