“Confrontation in the realm of René Benko” – under this title the “Manager Magazin” reports on a “top personality” who ended in bitter disappointment for the department store juggler. Because: Günther Helm, 43, once head of Hofer and then at drugstore chain Müller, would rather make a commitment from April as CEO of the listed trading company Cenomi Retail based in Saudi Arabia.
“Manager Magazin” also wants to know the background to this: “The long-standing Aldi manager, who is also closely connected privately, already had a contract ready to be signed. Behind the scenes, however, there was a competition with Benko’s former governor, Dieter Berninghaus, because according to insiders, Helm did not strive for a role alongside Berninghaus, but only wanted to take responsibility for which of the two managers he wanted to put in his hard-hit trading division.
The process with a contract ready for signature could certainly evoke associations with Benko: he is said to have once handed over a draft service contract to a former senior employee of the Ministry of Finance. The Public Prosecution Service for Economic Affairs and Corruption (WKStA) suspected bribery and Signa’s offices were searched.
After the rumors about Deutsche Bank, banking regulators and investor Klaus-Michael Kühne, who according to a media report is not necessarily overjoyed with his relationship with Signa, Günter Helm is now apparently leaving his friend with the beard.
The confidante of ex-chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) was even a guest at the pompous opening of the shopping block in Vienna’s Mariahilfer Strasse in October, a few days after the house searches. He sat there next to Benko’s advisor Susanne Riess-Hahn and eagerly took pictures. Helm is now drawn to the desert state. One reason, according to “Manager Magazin”: “Instead of a laborious restructuring at Signa, the development of a versatile retail group now lures.”
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
