André Leysen


André Leysen was a Belgian businessman. In 1951, he married Anne Ahlers, daughter of a shipping family from Bremen, Germany. Together they have four children: Bettina, Christian, Thomas, and Sabina.

Career

Main career

From 1952 until 1976 he worked for the shipping company Ahlers N.V., Antwerp. Since 1974 he is a member of the supervisory board of the Agfa-Gevaert group,. From 1978 until 1984 he was a member and chairman of the executive committee of the Agfa Gevaert group, and since 1984 he is chairman of the supervisory board.
In 1976, he was one of the co-founders of the VUM, which took over the newspapers of the Standaard group after its bankruptcy. He led the VUM until 1978, when his son Thomas took over. From 1990 until 1994 he was a member of the presidency in the board of directors of the Treuhandanstalt in Germany.

Former positions