Wendel
35.8
(1) Share of equity owned by Wendel as of December 31, 2020 net of treasury shares for 51.3% of voting rights
Bureau Veritas pursues its growth and global leadership strategy
Bureau Veritas is the world’s second-largest provider of compliance and certification services in the areas of quality, health, safety, environment and social responsibility (QHSE-SR). The group derives approximately 50% of its sales from high-growth countries.
Key figures
Discover how sustainability is embedded in Bureau Veritas' business model
2020 sales
€4,601 m
Amount invested by Wendel
€397.3m since 1995 (2)
Employees
75,000
Clients
400,000
ISO 14001 certification
83% of headcount activity covered
ISO 45001
87% of sites certified
Women (total headcount)
30%
(2) Amount of equity invested by Wendel for the stake held as of December 31, 2020.
Why did we invest in Bureau Veritas?
Bureau Veritas is ideally positioned in markets driven by long-term structural trends. QHSE regulations and standards are proliferating and becoming tougher to meet. Increasingly, certification and inspection activities are being outsourced. Health and environmental protection standards are becoming more stringent. And trade has become global.
Since it was founded in 1828, Bureau Veritas has gradually built up its globally renowned expertise. The market that Bureau Veritas addresses has numerous barriers to entry. Operating certification and approval are mandatory in each country. Service providers must offer a comprehensive range of inspection services (in particular for major clients) and extensive geographical coverage both locally and internationally. They must provide high value-added solutions through first-rate technical expertise and enjoy a reputation of independence and integrity. 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 sales of less than €400 million. Wendel then supported the company’s growth, until it held 99.2% of the capital in 2004. In 2007 Bureau Veritas was listed on the stock exchange, enabling it to continue its international expansion.
Key milestones of the investment
-
09.06.2004
66% controlling interest in Bureau Veritas -
09.16.2004
Offer to minority shareholders of Bureau Veritas -
11.02.2004
Takeover of Bureau Veritas - Offer made to minority shareholders of Bureau Veritas -
12.03.2004
Wendel Investment to own 99% of Bureau Veritas -
09.10.2007
Bureau Veritas lance son introduction en bourse -
09.17.2007
12 acquisitions signées depuis le 1er janvier 2007 représentant plus de 230 millions d’euros de chiffre d’affaires annuel cumulé -
10.23.2007
IPO of Bureau Veritas: Wendel sells 27.7 million shares at €37.75 per share and retains 67.6% of the capital of Bureau Veritas -
03.05.2009
Wendel has successfully completed the placing of a 10% stake in Bureau Veritas -
03.26.2009
Frédéric Lemoine to be appointed as Head of Executive Board -
03.05.2015
Wendel sells 10.9% of Bureau Veritas’ share capital -
03.06.2015
Wendel announces the completion of the sale of 10.9% of Bureau Veritas's share capital -
10.29.2018
Wendel sells 4.73% of Bureau Veritas’ share capital -
10.30.2018
Wendel announces the completion of the sale of 4.73% of Bureau Veritas’ share capital
- 66% controlling interest in Bureau Veritas - 110.8 KB - PDF
- Offer to minority shareholders of Bureau Veritas - 24.49 KB - PDF
- Takeover of Bureau Veritas - Offer made to minority shareholders of Bureau Veritas - 25.5 KB - PDF
- Wendel Investment to own 99% of Bureau Veritas - 27.71 KB - PDF
- Bureau Veritas lance son introduction en bourse - 142.75 KB - PDF
- 12 acquisitions signées depuis le 1er janvier 2007 représentant plus de 230 millions d’euros de chiffre d’affaires annuel cumulé - 42.93 KB - PDF
- IPO of Bureau Veritas: Wendel sells 27.7 million shares at €37.75 per share and retains 67.6% of the capital of Bureau Veritas - 20.84 KB - PDF
- Wendel has successfully completed the placing of a 10% stake in Bureau Veritas - 40.75 KB - PDF
- Frédéric Lemoine to be appointed as Head of Executive Board - 19.22 KB - PDF
- Wendel sells 10.9% of Bureau Veritas’ share capital - 314.25 KB - PDF
- Wendel announces the completion of the sale of 10.9% of Bureau Veritas's share capital - 315.23 KB - PDF
- Wendel sells 4.73% of Bureau Veritas’ share capital - 99.47 KB - PDF
- Wendel announces the completion of the sale of 4.73% of Bureau Veritas’ share capital - 627.31 KB - PDF
Read the press releases
Outlook for development
2016-2020 Ambition
In February 2020, Bureau Veritas announced that the achievement last year of its 2016-2020(1) ambition was no longer relevant in the context in the of COVID-19 crisis.
Bureau Veritas' solid fundamentals remain unchanged and clearly demonstrate the soundness of its strategy. Bureau Veritas will announce its next strategic plan in September 2020, continuing the current successful trajectory.
The Group will uphold its extra-financial commitments for 2020 and in particular aims to:
- Health and Safety: reduce accident rates by 50% (TAR: Total Accident Rate, LTR: Lost Time Rate)(2);
- Inclusion: achieve 25% female representation on the Group’s executive management team;
- Environment(3): reduce CO2 emissions by 10% per full-time equivalent employee; increase the use of renewable energies by 10%; have 75% of the Group’s businesses ISO 14001 certified (environmental management).
As of April 1, 2020, Bureau Veritas has indicated that current developments in the epidemic are threatening the global economy with a systemic crisis. In response, the Group is deploying its best efforts to protect its business activities and ensure continued excellence in the quality of the services it provides to its clients. In these unprecedented circumstances, the 2020 targets are no longer relevant. It is still too early to revise them at this stage.
(1) As a reminder, the financial ambition for 2016-2020 was as follows: increase Group sales by €1.5 billion in 2020 (compared to 2015), at the exchange rates used for the original Plan in 2015 as presented at the Journées Investisseurs (Investor Days) in October 2015, half of which was to come from organic growth and the other half from external growth; to achieve organic growth of between 5% and 7% between now and 2020; to achieve an adjusted operating margin higher than 17% in 2020, at the exchange rates used for the original Plan in 2015 as presented at the Journées Investisseurs in October 2015; to continue to generate significant available cash flow.
(2) Bureau Veritas defines attributable “adjusted” net income as attributable net income adjusted for other operating expenses net of tax.
(3) Net financial debt as defined in the calculation of bank covenants.
“Wendel is our stable core shareholder. We can count on the strength of Wendel in pursuing our development strategy.”
Sustainable development and extra-financial information
Bureau Veritas’ commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) issues reflects its wish to play its part in efforts that each company and citizen should make to address society’s social and environmental challenges. Besides its compliance with CSR regulations, Bureau Veritas also seeks to meet the needs of its clients, end consumers and all its stakeholders.
Owing to the nature of its services, Bureau Veritas has a direct and indirect impact on CSR issues: Directly, in each of its businesses, entities, subsidiaries and regions; Indirectly, Bureau Veritas offers a broad range of services aimed at improving the impact its clients have in terms of health and safety, security, environment and sustainable development.
As an example, in October 2020, Bureau Veritas launched its “Green Line”, a wide range of existing sustainability services that enable clients, private and public organizations to help them execute their sustainability strategies with trust and transparency.
For more information: https://group.bureauveritas.com/group/shaping-better-world
Bureau Veritas’ ESG approach
Health and Safety
Achieve 0.26 accident rate (TAR(1)) by 2025
Inclusion
Reach 35% of female representation in leadership positions (3) by 2025
Environment
Reduce CO2 emissions(2) to 2 tons per employee (per annum) by 202
(1) TAR: Total Accident Rate.
(2) Greenhouse gas emissions from offices and laboratories, tons of CO2 equivalent per employee and per year for Scopes 1, 2 and 3.
Capacity building
Achieve 35 training hours per employee (per annum) by 2025
(3) Proportion of women from the Executive Committee to Band III (internal grade corresponding to a management or executive management position) in the Group.
Top management
Didier Michaud-Daniel
CEO
Aldo Cardoso
Chairman of the Board
Wendel's role in corporate governance
Board of Directors
André François-Poncet (Vice-Chairman)
Christine Anglade Pirzadeh
Claude Ehlinger
Jérôme Michiels
Strategic Committee
André François-Poncet (Chairman)
Nomination & Compensation Committee
Claude Ehlinger
Audit and Risk Committee
Jérôme Michiels
As a majority shareholder, Wendel votes Bureau Veritas' resolutions in accordance with the best ESG governance practices.