He was the founder and chairman of the CMA CGM, a French container transportation and shipping company, the fourth largest in the world as of June 2020.
In a Les Echos article, Saadé said: "I thought the container was an excellent idea for transporting goods as it was closed, easy and quick.
[8] In 1983, Saadé made the decision to cross the Suez Canal and extend the company lines to Mina-Qaboos in the Gulf of Oman.
[citation needed] In 2011, he built the Group's headquarters in Marseille: the CMA CGM Tower designed by Zaha Hadid, 147m in height with 33 floors.
[13][14][15] The French President met Jacques Saadé again in 2015 for the inauguration of the CMA CGM Bougainville in Port of Le Havre.
[21] In 2018, Forbes Magazine listed Saade’s net worth at 7 billion Euros, making him the 228th richest man in the world at that time.
[40][41][42][43][44] These vessels, combined with various other actions, allowed the group to reduce by 50% its carbon emissions per shipped container per km on its owned fleet between 2007 and 2015,[45] confirming an objective set in 2007.
[46] On 1 June 2020 the master of a container ship APL England, Mohamad Zulkhaili Bin Alias, owned by CMA CGM & ANL (Singapore) lost about 50 containers overboard caused by poor cargo loading by the ships captain Mohamad Zulkhaili Bin Alias.
[47] When writing an article about family capitalism, Aymeric Dewimille wrote: "Loyally supported by his son Rodolphe, now Executive Officer in the Group, and his daughter Tanya, head of communications and on the Board of Directors, Jacques Saadé is totally committed to human values that traditionally underpin the governance of family-run companies...
In its 11 July 2011 edition, the British daily, a reference in the shipping industry, highlighted the fact that "with the support of a solid family network, Jacques R. Saadé fought tooth and nail during the crisis, keeping the creditors at bay, juggling the order books and deployment of his fleet, and having the courage to reject several potential investors waiting for a partner that does not interfere in the way he runs the company".
The daily French financial newspaper Les Echos said in 2011: "Many observers thought CMA CGM would not recover from the losses suffered two years ago, while Jacques R. Saadé said he always knew his company would survive.