Guy Wyser-Pratte, the Franco-American activist investor who believed his votes were miscounted when he took on the French conglomerate Lagardère last year, has been rebuffed by the French market regulator, the AMF, which will not be looking into his concerns.

Readers with long memories will recall that Wyser-Pratte attempted to get elected to Lagardère's board in 2010 in a bid to change its corporate strategy.