Klecha & Co. appoints Arnaud Coustillière as Senior advisor for its activities in France
Wing Vice-Admiral (2S) Arnaud Coustilliere, former General manager of digital defence directorate, DGNUM, the body responsible for the information and communication systems implemented within the French Ministry of Armed Forces will join the investment bank Klecha & Co. specialized in mergers & acquisitions in the technology sector Prior to DGNUM Mr. Coustilliere was the General Officer in charge of Cyber defence, then the first COMCYBER, the French military cyber forces.
Paris, 1 October 2020 - Klecha & Co, an independent European investment bank specialized in mergers and acquisitions in the technology, software, IT services, hardware and IoT markets has appointed Arnaud Coustillière as Senior Advisor for its consulting activities in France. He is also a member of several defence and technology committees in the French market.
Arnaud Coustillière, 59, had been head of the French Army's ISD since 2017, which he had transformed into a digital directorate, DGNUM. His mission was to orchestrate the digital transformation of defence. In this position, he reported directly to Florence Parly, French Minister of the Armed Forces.
During his career, Arnaud Coustillière has held several positions, including Director of Information Systems for the French Navy from 2006 to 2008, in charge of joint coherence of networks and cyber, then was appointed first General Officer at Cyber Defense in 2011, where he was in charge of its ramp-up until 2017. In this position, he was also the first COMCYBER (Cyber Defense Command) and was in command of the armies' cyber defence capabilities from 2011 to 2017.
Arnaud Coustillière is a graduate of the Ecole Navale and a graduate of the Collège interarmées de défense and the Ecole de guerre.
"I am delighted to bring my skills and strategic vision of the French market to the rapidly expanding investment bank Klecha & Co. At the French Ministry of the Armed Forces, I was in charge of structuring and orchestrating the digital transformation and cyber defence through various modernization initiatives. I have been led to develop a data culture and take up challenges around new technologies such as AI, Cloud... This collaboration will enable me to contribute directly to the development and strengthening of the trusted digital ecosystem," said Arnaud Coustillière, Senior Advisor for Klecha & Co.
"We live in an era of profound transformation driven by digital and data technologies. The mission of Klecha & Co. is to support the players in this transformation in order to create in France and Europe the digital leaders of tomorrow. The appointment of Arnaud Coustillière is part of this long-term project that we have undertaken in the French market. His knowledge and experience will be of great value for the development of our activities and those of our clients," said Stéphane Klécha, managing partner of Klecha & Co.