(Corrects final paragraph to show 2022 capital expenditure was $549 million, not $537 million)
PARIS, March 22 (Reuters) – Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), one of the world’s biggest crop merchants, has no exposure as a company to Credit Suisse and has “secure relationships” with its banks, its CEO told Reuters.
The group, which on Wednesday reported a jump in annual net profit to $1 billion, tends not to have exposure either to regional banks, Chief Executive Michael Gelchie said in an interview.
He declined to comment on any exposure to Credit Suisse for LDC’s main shareholder Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, whose holding firm had a reduced loan arrangement with Credit Suisse worth around $240 million as of September 2021.
LDC wants to accelerate capital expenditure, including on acquisitions, to between $800 million and $1 billion annually in the coming years to reinforce its core crop merchandising activity and expand in food ingredients, Gelchie said.
That compares with 2022 investments of $549 million, which already marked a rise from $372 million the prior year.
Reporting by Gus Trompiz, Editing by Louise Heavens