Reuters — Commodity trader Louis Dreyfus Corp. is in talks to sell a stake to Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
For the privately held company, which has been facing a challenging business environment, bringing external investors would be a first in its 169-year history. In 2019, LDC profits declined sharply, on low prices due to the impact of U.S.-China trade war and the swine fever epidemic in China.
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Louis Dreyfus declined to respond to Reuters’ request for a comment, while ADQ was not available for a comment.
Reuters in January exclusively reported that LDC was open to selling a large non-controlling stake to an external stakeholder, after a buyout of family minorities was finalized last year.
LDC, majority owned by Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, is the “D” of the so-called “ABCD” quartet of global agricultural commodity traders that includes Archer Daniels Midland, Bunge and Cargill.
ADQ, a state-backed holding company, has been acquiring businesses in the commodities and agriculture sectors. Its portfolio include the General Holding Corporation PJSC (Senaat), which has its subsidiaries trading in agri-food and industrial assets.
In May, ADQ also bought a controlling stake in Al Dahra Holding, an Abu Dhabi-based multinational animal feed and essential food commodities specialist firm.
— Reporting for Reuters by Shruti Sonal in Bangalore.
