In a portrait of “Alexis Kohler, the man in the shadow of the President”, “Complementary investigation” goes into detail on the case which earned Emmanuel Macron’s right arm an indictment for “illegal capture of interest”. For six years, while he was stationed at Bercy, was the senior official transparent about his links with the shareholders of MSC?
Would Alexis Kohler have kept his closeness to the Aponte family secret? It is through the wife of the founder of MSC, Rafaela Aponte, that Alexis Kohler is related to the leaders of the world’s leading shipowner. She is the first cousin of her mother, Sola Hakim. For years, only a few very close collaborators were aware of these links – even though the senior official represented the French State in the context of files linked to MSC.
Between 2008 and 2012, working at the APE (State Shareholding Agency) in Bercy, Alexis Kohler notably sat on the board of directors of STX (future Chantiers de l’Atlantique in Saint-Nazaire), of which MSC is the main customer. He would have taken part in votes directly concerning the shipowner. He claims not to have done only to apply the directives given by his superiors and to relay the position of the State shareholder.
A curiously informal shift
In 2012, having become deputy director of the cabinet of the Minister of the Economy Pierre Moscovici, Alexis Kohler would have again had access to information concerning MSC. At the time, while the STX company was in difficulty, Bercy was trying to fill its order book, notably with MSC liners. To avoid a conflict of interest, the minister’s office claims to have organized a deportation, that is to say a withdrawal of Alexis Kohler from everything that directly or indirectly affects MSC – and therefore, logically, STX as well. But this deportation would not have been formalized in writing, and only a very small number of officials would have been informed.
As a result, according to information from “Complementary Investigation”, A. Kohler would have received a good dozen messages and ministerial notes related to MSC. As well as emails sent by Julien Denormandie, officially in charge of MSC, already mentioned by the media Off Investigation. In six of these emails, MSC is explicitly mentioned – for a request for public liquidity, a financing offer, an appointment… Questioned on this subject by “Complément d’Enquête”, Julien Denormandie sees nothing wrong. abnormal in the context of “functioning of a ministerial cabinet”.
Emails that question
One of these emails, with the subject “confidential”, evokes the shareholding of STX and refers to a financial adviser of MSC. While he is supposed to be deported, Alexis Kohler responds to it, and gives his opinion. Still according to Julien Denormandie, STX’s shareholding would be “a subject that does not concern MSC in the first place is the future of our shipyards…” A future guaranteed in part by orders from MSC…
On March 25, 2014, the boss of STX (who refused to answer questions from the magazine) wrote this to Alexis Kohler: “Thank you for the discreet supervisor that you have been”. “Discreet supervisor”, a term that questions… and that “completely refutes” Julien Denormandie.
Excerpt from “Alexis Kohler, the President’s shadow man”, a document to be seen in “Complementary investigation” on March 30, 2023.
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