Téthys

Jean-Pierre Meyers serves as CEO of Téthys SAS and supervises the overall family holding structure. Alexandre Benais is the CEO of Téthys Invest, the active investment subsidiary, and manages direct venture and growth-equity allocations. Jean-Victor and Nicolas Meyers, both sons of Françoise, sit on the board of Téthys SAS, with Jean-Victor also chairing his personal vehicle Constantine Capital.

Deal flow appears to leverage the Bettencourt family's deep European industrial and luxury networks, including co-investment relationships with the Wertheimer family office (Mousse Investments, per public record, 2023) and institutional partners like CPP Investments. The family's L'Oréal board presence and multi-generational brand relationships across France provide origination advantages not available to conventional PE funds.

Téthys is both. It functions as a single-family office managing the Bettencourt Meyers family wealth while technically structured as a holding company (SAS) under French corporate law. Téthys SAS houses the 33% L'Oréal stake and collects dividends; Téthys Invest, launched in 2020, operates as the direct-investing arm writing venture and growth-equity checks.

The available evidence points predominantly to direct investments through Téthys Invest rather than LP commitments to third-party funds. Known positions — Galileo Global Education and The Row — were structured as direct equity stakes, often alongside co-investors. The entity's permanent capital and in-house team suggest a preference for control and direct influence over pooled-fund exposure.

Téthys SAS owns roughly 33% of L'Oréal's equity, making the Bettencourt family the largest single shareholder bloc. Nestlé holds approximately 20%. Both Téthys and Nestlé are board-represented, and the two shareholders have a long-standing pact governing their respective stakes, creating a stable governance environment that underpins L'Oréal's strategic continuity.

Yes. Fondation Bettencourt Schueller is a fully independent private foundation chaired by Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, with over €600m in lifetime grants (per the foundation's public record). It operates with a dedicated governance structure separate from Téthys SAS, though the founding family remains the primary donor. The foundation focuses on life sciences research, arts and culture, and social inclusion.

Téthys Invest concentrates on growth equity and late-stage venture, occasionally extending to buyout-style positions. The disclosed investment in Galileo Global Education, partnered with CPP Investments, suggests appetite for established enterprises with scaling potential. Ticket sizes appear in the €10m–€50m range, consistent with a family office deploying permanent capital rather than a traditional venture fund structure.