The key point: The Geneva-based oil trader Gunvor changed its name a month ago to become Centalion, at the end of an eventful year.
A year of upheaval
- The group went through a change of shareholders, management and company name.
- The damage to its reputation has piled up, from the US authorities to the Swiss courts.
- The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland has opened a third criminal investigation in fifteen years.
A strategic name change
- The newspaper compares this choice to those of Facebook, which became Meta, or Philip Morris, which became Altria.
- These companies sought to shed an image associated with an accusation.
- Gunvor had been described as a “Kremlin puppet” since November 2025.
Key figures
- 26 years : age of the group, founded in Geneva
- Top 5 : global ranking in hydrocarbon trading
- 3 : criminal investigations by the OAG in fifteen years
In short
Founded in Geneva, Gunvor ranks among the world’s five largest hydrocarbon traders. After a year marked by changes of owners and managers, it is now called Centalion.
