The French advertising group Havas said on Tuesday that its chairman and chief executive, Alain de Pouzilhac, was stepping down, after a public clash with a big investor, Vincent Bolloré.
Mr. de Pouzilhac’s exit from Havas ends an almost yearlong battle with Mr. Bolloré, the head of the manufacturing company, the Bolloré Groupe, which became Havas’s largest shareholder after amassing 22 percent of the company.
Mr. Bolloré, a well-known activist investor, has purchased sizable stakes in lagging companies like Lazard and Mediobanco in the past, and often sold them for a profit after pressuring management to improve performance.
He told Le Monde last week that the head of the TBWA agency, Jean-Marie Dru, would have the right qualifications to lead Havas.
Source: New York Times
