The American success story will probably not have a happy ending. Sadri Fegaier, crowned “France’s youngest billionaire” with his entry in 2018, then aged 37, into the ranking of 500 greatest fortunes in France from the magazine Challenge, has an appointment this Wednesday at the Paris commercial court which will have to rule on the judicial liquidation of four companies of its Indexia holding company. A hearing which announces two others to come: Criminally, in September, for deceptive commercial practices, then in civil where he is attacked by hundreds of customers denouncing undue deductions.
Starting from nothing with a trucker father, a housekeeper mother, a childhood in a housing estate in Romans-sur-Isère and a simple BTS in his pocket, Sadri Fegaier made his fortune at the turn of the 2010s with his French multi-risk insurance company (SFAM). Once valued at 1.7 billion euros, the company was also established in Belgium and Spain. The SFAM, judicially liquidated on April 24offered insurance contracts for mobile phones and other electronic devices and, to do so, had established partnerships with SFR or Fnac, of which it had taken 11.34% of the capital in 2018 for 330 million euros.
More than 600 complaining customers
In addition to its holding company Indexia, the Paris commercial court will examine this Wednesday the future of its companies Indexia Développement, Hubside and Hubside Recycle which worked in the creation of websites and the repackaging of multimedia products.
For Sadri Fegaier, the problems began to arise in 2019, when the Fraud Repression (DGCCRF) imposed a fine of 10 million euros on him for “deceptive commercial practices”, in a penal settlement accepted by the SFAM. Today, more than 600 defrauded customers have initiated proceedings against the fallen billionaire. Nearby Parisiantheir master lawyer Emma Leoty explains that the amounts taken by the various companies of the Indexia group from their bank accounts in five years are “between 6,000 and 8,000 euros on average”.
The darling of the business world and the stars
The future seems very bleak for Sadri Fegaier, who once became the darling of the country’s business world. In 2016, he notably attracted the Edmond de Rothschild investment fund which took a stake in SFAM and everything seemed to succeed. He impresses the gallery with the horses from his stud located in his native Drôme, marries a professional French rider and organizes “International Jumpings” (horse show jumping competitions) attended by a few stars like Guillaume Canet, Charlotte Casiraghi, daughter of Princess Caroline of Monaco, or even Jessica Springsteen, list Paris Match. He also treats his employees – up to 3,000 of whom work for his companies and whom he takes to seminars in idyllic destinations around the Mediterranean. Employees who today are demanding their unpaid wages in April, some of whom are denouncing the unions.
These bright times are now far away for the ex-insurance magnate now suspected of fraud. To top it off, Urssaf is demanding 12 million euros in arrears in social security contributions. Some say that the trend is for films that end badly. Concerning Sadri Fegaier’s affairs, the epilogue is approaching.