The Luxe Kering group, which owns Yves Saint Laurent in particular, has been the subject of an investigation for "laundering of tax fraud" since February 2019. The group has allegedly evaded "2.5 billion euros in taxes, including minus 180 million euros, "according to information from Mediapart.
The luxury giant Kering, which owns the Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent brands in France, has been targeted since February 2019 by an investigation for "laundering of tax fraud", we learned on Wednesday from the national financial prosecutor confirming information from
Mediapart
.
According to the online media, this investigation targets the French side of a tax package that would have allowed the group led by François-Henri Pinault to declare in Switzerland activities carried out in other countries, mainly in Italy.
The group would have thus avoided "2.5 billion euros in taxes between 2010 and 2017, including at least 180 million in France," says
Mediapart
.
"Kering strongly contests the totally unfounded allegations of money laundering and tax evasion mentioned in the
Mediapart
article
," the group reacted on Wednesday before the PNF confirmed an investigation in progress, claiming not to have " no knowledge "of these investigations.
"If necessary, the group will provide its full cooperation to the authorities concerned within the framework of the possible investigation, in full transparency and with serenity", assured the group.
A tax adjustment of 1.25 billion euros in Italy
In Italy, the case earned Kering a record tax adjustment of 1.25 billion euros in 2019 for the part concerning its Gucci brand, following an investigation by the Milan prosecutor's office started at the end of 2017. The Milanese prosecutor's office had considered that Kering had invoiced on behalf of its Swiss subsidiary Luxury Goods International (LGI), its logistics platform located in Lugano in Switzerland, activities in fact carried out in Italy in order to reduce its taxes in the Peninsula.
Mediapart
, revealing the case in March 2018, wrote that the group had "extended" this "system designed by the Italian group to all its luxury brands (excluding jewelry), including the French Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent".
"Thanks to a secret tax agreement with the canton of Ticino, Kering paid only 8% tax on LGI's profits, against 33% in France," says the news site which figures at 180 million the taxes evaded by the only brand Yves Saint Laurent.