It was with profound sadness that the members of Eurazeo’s Supervisory Board, its executives and all its employees learned of the passing of Michel David-Weill in his ninetieth year, a prominent shareholder, member of the Group’s Board and Chairman of its Supervisory Board for 20 years.
Eurazeo is bereaved and sends its heartfelt condolences to his wife Mrs. Hélène David-Weill, his four daughters Béatrice, Natalie, Cécile and Agathe, his son-in-law and Vice-Chairman of the Supervisory Board Olivier Merveilleux du Vignaux, and to all his other loved ones. The Group also sends its friendly and fraternal thoughts to the employees at Lazard, which Michel David-Weill led for more than 25 years.
Eurazeo has lost its founder, its builder, the man who just days ago continued to share his extraordinary intelligence, inalterable passion, unwavering loyalty and unique angle on the business world, who was recognized for his intellectual curiosity, his long-term perspective and his boldness. Eurazeo’s story overlaps with Michel David-Weill’s life. From the Company’s inception until it became the worldwide investment group it is today, he shared with the Group his lifelong passion for growing businesses, financing innovation and entrepreneurs, and sustainable growth.
Eurazeo’s executives and employees will remember his fantastically rich personality, his extensive culture spanning business, history, civilizations, literature and the arts, his ability to encapsulate the most complex issues in simple terms, and his caring attitude towards others, which earned him admiration and respect. His elegance, humanity and ethics have left a deep mark on the Group’s culture.
Eurazeo would also like to pay tribute to Michel David-Weill’s invaluable contribution to France’s stature and influence. He was awarded the Grand Croix of the Légion d’Honneur, and his career as captain of industry, great benefactor and patron of the arts and culture rank him among our country’s finest ambassadors abroad.
Eurazeo’s Supervisory Board gathered today to pay tribute to Michel David-Weill.
Jean-Charles Decaux, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, stated,
“Eurazeo’s Supervisory Board expresses its deep sadness at the announcement of Michel David-Weill’s passing. Our Group has lost a man who, with his family, was one of its founding fathers. The Supervisory Board has lost the man who chaired it for more than 20 years. Speaking for myself and my family, I pay heartfelt, affectionate tribute to the memory of an extraordinary partner. As prominent Eurazeo shareholders and members of its Supervisory Board, we have built with the David-Weill family over the past years a very close relationship based on our shared identity as responsible long-term investors. I am thankful for having known such an inspiring, elegant and passionate man. The Group’s fantastic transformation is due, to a very large extent, to this invaluable link between our families, which made for an exemplary handover of the chairmanship of the Supervisory Board with Michel David-Weill. We send his family our deepest condolences.”
Virginie Morgon, Chair of the Executive Board, said,
“With the passing of Michel David-Weill, the Eurazeo group has lost its founder, one of its prominent shareholders who incessantly strove to grow and promote the Group with his family. I am deeply thankful for what he enabled Eurazeo to become. With Bruno Roger and Patrick Sayer, former leaders of the Group, I pay homage to the freedom he gave us, for the trust he showed in us, for his high standards that pushed us to surpass ourselves. Michel David-Weill was a man gifted with great wisdom, combined with very original thinking. He had a characteristic ability to express matters simply and self-evidently when they were not. On a personal note, I have lost someone who mattered in my professional life, one of my bearings and a person I looked up to, who will continue to inspire me. I send Mrs. David-Weill, his daughters and loved ones my heartfelt condolences and deepest sympathies.”
