Belgian investor Albert Frère has died at the age of 92, according to his investment company Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (GBL). Mr Frère, who had a private fortune estimated at around EUR6bn, supported major mergers and acquisitions such as the merger of Lafarge and Holcim into LafargeHolcim in 2015.

"For more than three decades, GBL has developed under his leadership into one of the largest holdings in Europe," says the GBL. "His professional and human qualities have had a strong impact on our group." Frère's investments have also made history in Luxembourg, where GBL now has several subsidiaries.

At LafargeHolcim, GBL holds 9.4 per cent of shares, making it the second-largest shareholder after Thomas Schmidheiny’s Schweizerische Cement-Industrie-Gesellschaft (11.4 per cent). An additional five per cent stake is held by Harris Associates LP and a further three per cent by Harris Associates Investment Trust. Black Rock Inc has a 3.1 per cent shareholding. NNS Jersey Trust owns a 2.73 per cent stake, including 0.99 per cent, or 6m options by Nassef Sawiris.