NEWS FLASH: CMA CGM’s founder passes away

Jacques R. Saadé, founding president of the CMA CGM Group, passed away Sunday, June 24, 2018 at the age of 81.    Jacques R. Saadé, founding president of the CMA CGM Group, passed away Sunday, June 24, 2018 at the age of 81.
   He was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1937 and graduated from the London School of Economics in 1957.
   In 1978, Jacques Saadé moved to France, where he set up the Compagnie Maritime d’Affrètement (CMA). He began with four employees, one ship, and one maritime service between Marseilles, France and Beirut.
   Jacques Saadé sent his first ships beyond the Mediterranean and had them cross the Suez Canal in 1983, and launched a service linking North Europe and Asia in 1986.
   Anticipating major developments in world trade, and convinced that the container would have a determining role in these changes, CMA CGM said that Jacques Saadé opened CMA’s first office in China, in Shanghai in 1992, and China quickly became the most important market for CMA.
   Jacques Saadé acquired Compagnie Générale Maritime (CGM) when it was privatized in 1996, then merged CMA and CGM, which led to the birth of the CMA CGM Group in 1999. “This acquisition, a turning point in the group’s history, was the first step in a series of targeted acquisitions that would contribute to positioning CMA CGM Group as a world leader in the shipping industry,” CMA CGM said.
   In 2006, CMA CGM Group became the third largest container shipping company in the world and still holds that slot today. Its 494 ships currently serve over 420 ports across five continents. 
   Last February, Jacques Saadé appointed his son, Rodolphe Saadé, to serve as chief executive officer of the CMA CGM Group and appointed him chairman of the board of directors in November.