PAI's Zinsou appointed prime minister of Benin

Zinsou, who holds both French and Beninese nationalities, formed his new government on 18 June. He publicly stated he would step down at the end of his mandate.

Zinsou joined PAI Partners in 2008, having previously worked for investment bank Rothschild. He had already started cultivating links to the political sphere, having worked alongside former French prime minister Laurent Fabius, who is now foreign affairs minister in François Hollande's government.

His arrival and rise at PAI sparked internal controversy, which ultimately resulted in the departure of key partners Bertrand Meunier and Dominique Mégret. The much-publicised strife triggered a key-man clause on the firm's 2008 fund, which was ultimately halved to €2.7bn.

PAI has since been on the mend since and successfully closed its latest vehicle, PAI Europe VI, on €3.3bn earlier this year.

The GP announced two years ago that Zinsou would step down from his leadership role in 2015, to be replaced by current chief investment officer Michel Paris. The plan at the time was for Zinsou to join the firm's supervisory board before eventually retiring in 2017.

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