Casino Boss Questioned By Police In Stock Probe

The CEO of Casino, Jean-Charles Naouri, is being questioned by the police. An investigation is happening because of alleged stock price manipulation, corruption, and insider trading. The French financial prosecutor's office confirmed this on Thursday.

Casino's stock dropped by 9.4% due to financial issues.

The government is looking into Casino for possible wrongdoing in 2018 and 2019. They say it might include cheating with prices, doing corrupt business, and trading using inside knowledge. The investigation started last year in February and is still in the early stages.

On Thursday, Reuters reached out to Casino but they declined to comment. Naouri, who is 74 years old, is the chairman and CEO of the company that owns Franprix and Monoprix.

The people in the prosecutor's office didn't say if the investigation was about Naouri or not.

In 2020, the prosecutor's office began an investigation after being notified by France's AMF market watchdog. This comes from a source familiar with the situation.

Casino is in financial trouble. They are talking to creditors. The talks are backed by the court. Wealthy investors want to help. There are two plans on the table. Negotiations have started.

The casino has had a lot of debt for a long time. They bought other things and lost money. Also, they were not doing as well as other casinos in the area.

Benoit Van Overstraeten, Silvia Aloisi, Dominique Vidalon, Tassilo Hummel and Sudip Kar-Gupta reported it. Susan Fenton edited it.