Close-Up: Live Issue - Will Havas be the purchase to tame the 'Breton buccaneer'?

Vincent Bollore's image is that of a raider not media mogul, Mark Tungate says.

French stockbrokers call him the 'Breton buccaneer' but until a couple of weeks ago, few people in the media community had heard of Vincent Bollore. Even in France, where he is a fairly well-known industrialist, he is often referred to as 'enigmatic'. A request to interview him was met with a curt: 'Monsieur Bollore is not talking to the press. He has no comments about Havas.'

Havas, of course, is the reason that Bollore has moved into the spotlight.

In the midst of the French group's attempts to buy Grey, Bollore increased his stake in Havas from 5 per cent to more than 10 per cent - making him the company's largest shareholder - and made public his opposition to the Grey purchase. It seems he questioned the wisdom of the bid at a time when Havas is in poor financial shape. He is pushing for a presence on the board (at least two seats) and a management restructure which would give him a bigger say in the company's future.

Last week, Bollore made headlines on both sides of the Channel when he increased his share to 13.6 per cent. At the same time, it was reported that he was talking to the WPP group chief executive, Sir Martin Sorrell, about a possible joint takeover of Havas. Sorrell confirmed that they had 'been in touch'. The news pushed Havas' share price up 2.13 per cent, to 4.32 euros, and changed its rating from 'negative' to 'positive'.

The Havas chairman, Alain de Pouzilhac, played down the takeover rumours, but told French reporters that Bollore's involvement was 'a great opportunity'.

Analysts agree that a management shake-up and the presence of a dynamic businessman like Bollore would do the company's image good. Havas is undergoing a restructure, having sold a number of units, and intends to raise 402 million euros through a two-for-one rights issue. It lost nearly 400 million euros last year - although in the first half of this year it announced a return to profit, posting a net income of 14 million euros.