The Heir To A $15 Billion Hermès Fortune Adopted His Gardener, LOST The Fortune AND Then Ghosted Qatar's Royal Family

In the rarefied world of luxury fashion and high finance, few stories are stranger — or more dramatic — than that of Nicolas Puech, the 82-year-old great-grandson of Hermès founder Thierry Hermès. The reclusive heir is now at the center of an international saga involving a secretive multi-billion-dollar deal with Qatar's royal family, a missing 5% stake in one of the world's most prestigious luxury brands, and a tangle of conflicting legal claims that stretch from Switzerland to Washington, D.C.

According to a lawsuit filed in U.S. federal court, Puech agreed on February 10, 2025, to sell more than six million Hermès shares — worth over $15 billion at the time — to Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar. But just weeks later, Puech backed out, claiming he couldn't access the shares.

And it gets even stranger: the billionaire heir to a $300 billion fashion empire now says he simply doesn't know where the shares are.

The $15 Billion Deal That Disappeared

The lawsuit, filed by Honor America Capital, an investment entity formed by the deputy emir of Qatar and backed by the Emir himself, accuses Puech of breaching the share sale agreement. It demands the court enforce the contract and award $1.3 billion in damages for lost profits, opportunity costs, and reputational harm.

The complaint, originally public but now sealed, reveals that months of negotiations culminated in a formal contract signed on February 10, 2025. In the filings, Qatar's representatives confirmed they had secured full funding from the Emir to close the deal. But shortly thereafter, the deal unraveled.

According to letters submitted in court, Puech's lawyer told the Qataris on March 19 that, despite "best and repeated efforts," his client was "unable" to obtain the shares and would not proceed with the sale.

This is not the first time Nicolas Puech has insisted his Hermès fortune has mysteriously disappeared.

(Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Hermes)

The Vanishing Fortune

Puech, once worth $14–15 billion thanks to a 6% stake in Hermès, now claims those shares vanished — the result of a "gigantic fraud" allegedly orchestrated by his former financial advisor. He has filed legal complaints in both Switzerland and France, accusing the advisor of misappropriating the bearer shares — a now-rare type of stock certificate not registered in anyone's name and nearly impossible to trace.

Swiss courts have thus far rejected Puech's fraud claims, ruling that he knowingly gave his financial manager full authority to manage his holdings. But Puech is still pursuing the case in France and insists the shares either still exist in a trust created by the advisor — or were transferred to a third party without his consent.

One of his suspicions? That the shares were funneled to Bernard Arnault, the luxury goods tycoon behind LVMH, who notoriously tried (and failed) to take over Hermès in the early 2010s. Arnault once covertly amassed a 23% stake in Hermès, triggering a full-scale war within the Hermès family and leading to legal sanctions. Puech was one of the few family members who refused to sign a pact to block Arnault's efforts. Some family members have long believed Puech sold his stake to Arnault. He denies this.

The Gardener Who Might Inherit Hermès

If the royal intrigue and missing billions weren't enough, the story took another twist in 2023 when Puech announced he was adopting his middle-aged Moroccan gardener and leaving him half of his fortune.

Yes — with no children or spouse, Puech chose to legally adopt his longtime handyman and gardener, instantly making him heir to what was then a multi-billion-dollar estate. The move enraged the Isocrates Foundation, a non-profit Puech had created in 2011 with the expectation it would inherit his wealth.

Under Swiss law, adopted children are exempt from inheritance taxes, making the adoption not only shocking — but also incredibly financially advantageous for the gardener.

And now, with Puech simultaneously claiming he does have the Hermès shares when negotiating with Qatar, but doesn't when appearing in court, even more questions are being raised.

So… Does He Have the Shares or Not?

That's the billion-dollar question. Or rather, the $15 billion question.

Puech appears to have told Swiss courts one thing — that his shares are lost due to financial malfeasance. But in the U.S. lawsuit filed by the Qatari entity, he clearly represented that he controlled and intended to transfer over 6 million Hermès shares. Which version is true? That's now up to investigators and international courts to sort out.

But as Columbia University corporate law professor Eric Talley told The New York Times, even if Puech is telling the truth and the shares are missing, a court judgment in favor of Qatar could still give the monarchy legal leverage over his estate if the shares resurface — or if his adopted heir inherits.

With Hermès stock surging more than 200% over the past five years and the brand hotter than ever, that stake is among the most coveted in global luxury. And if Puech does still have control — or regains it through litigation — Qatar may not give up easily.