Ray-Ban Heir Escalates Fight over €10 Bn Family Fortune Ahead of AGM

Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio, an heir to the Ray-Ban fortune built by his late father and Luxottica founder Leonardo Del Vecchio, has publicly urged the board of the family's Luxembourg-based holding company, Delfin Sarl, to support his €10 billion ($11.5 billion) plan to acquire the stakes held by two of his siblings. This comes days before a shareholder meeting scheduled for June 30, according to a report by Bloomberg.

In an open letter published on Friday on the website of Quotidiano Nazionale, an online newspaper he owns, the 31-year-old questioned why the Delfin board had changed its stance on a transaction that shareholders had already approved in key parts.

"The issue stopped being financial and became a matter of governance," Del Vecchio wrote in the letter.

The Proposed Deal

Leonardo Maria is seeking to acquire the combined 25% stakes held by siblings Luca Del Vecchio and Paola Del Vecchio in Delfin. If completed, the transaction would raise his ownership in the holding company to 37.5%, making him its largest shareholder.

To finance the acquisition, he has assembled a debt package backed by UniCredit, BNP Paribas and Crédit Agricole, Bloomberg reported citing La Repubblica. The financing ranks among the largest acquisition loans ever pursued by an individual in Europe.

Del Vecchio said the lenders had recently requested greater clarity on future dividends, capital stability and Delfin's long-term strategy as financing talks progressed. While he described those requests as legitimate, he argued that Delfin's board had failed to adopt a clear and unified approach in response.

Governance Dispute

The letter deepens a dispute over control of one of Europe's largest family fortunes. The governance framework at Delfin was established by Leonardo Del Vecchio, who founded Luxottica before its business became EssilorLuxottica SA. Notably, he died in 2022.

Leonardo Maria's proposal is partly intended to reduce divisions within the family, which has struggled to agree on major decisions, the report added.

Delfin chairman Francesco Milleri is separately considering an alternative proposal under which the holding company would repurchase the stakes being sold by Luca and Paola Del Vecchio, according to La Repubblica.