Former Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam has formally renounced his French citizenship, according to a notice in the French government gazette, a move that could pave the way for his presidential bid in Ivory Coast.
Thiam, who became leader of the opposition PDCI party in 2023, is seen as one of the front-runners for the October election. However, the 83-year-old current President Alassane Ouattara has yet to confirm if he will seek re-election.
Ivory Coast, a major global cocoa producer, has recovered from a decade-long civil war in the early 2000s and has since emerged as one of West Africa’s fastest-growing economies.
Thiam announced his candidacy last month, but Ivory Coast law requires candidates to be Ivorian citizens without holding another nationality. According to a French government journal published on Thursday, Thiam has “been released from his allegiance to France” following his request to renounce his French passport.
At 62, Thiam’s career has spanned a variety of high-profile roles, including serving as a minister in Ivory Coast before the 1999 coup that ousted President Henri Konan Bedie. He later worked for McKinsey, Aviva, and Prudential before becoming CEO of Credit Suisse in 2015. He was removed from the role in 2020.
Despite Thursday’s announcement regarding his citizenship, Thiam faces ongoing challenges. A court in Abidjan began hearing a case filed by a former PDCI official, claiming his election as party leader should be annulled due to his holding French nationality at the time. The case was adjourned until April.
Questions regarding Ivorian identity, a sensitive topic stemming from the civil war, could resurface as Thiam’s nationality issue raises tensions ahead of the election.
Thiam has not responded to requests for comment.
PDCI spokesperson Bredoumy Soumaila Kouassi clarified that the party’s internal rules do not specifically require Ivorian nationality for leadership positions and that Thiam has never lost his Ivorian citizenship.
Political analyst Arthur Banga stated that Thiam may need to wait for the Constitutional Council’s decision in August to confirm whether he can legally run for president. He noted that acquiring French nationality could be seen as automatically invalidating Thiam’s Ivorian citizenship.
Thiam also faces internal competition within his party, as former trade minister Jean-Louis Billon declared his intention to seek the party’s nomination in October.
