(IDEX Online) - The French luxury conglomerate LVMH is reported to be considering a possible takeover of its Swiss rival Richemont, owner of Cartier, the world's second-largest watchmaking brand.Bernard Arnault, LVMH chairman and CEO - and currently the world's richest person - is eyeing the empire founded by South African businessman Johann Rupert in 1988, according to the Swiss newspaper Finanz und Wirtschaft. Rupert is said to oppose such a deal.The newspaper says (translated from German): "It's still little more than a whisper. But in the luxury industry, there is whispered talk that Bernard Arnault ???,? ? wants to take over Swiss competitor Richemont. "More specifically, he is said to be targeting Richemont's industry-leading jewelry brand, Cartier."LVMH finally added Tiffany & Co to its list of 75 maisons in January 2021, after protracted negotiations and legal moves. It paid $15.8bn.Adding Cartier - second only to Rolex - to its portfolio, would increase its dominance in the jewelry sector.Richemont controls 26 maisons, among them Chloe, Montblanc, IWC, A. Lange & Sohne, Van Cleef & Arpels, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Piaget and Vacheron Constantin.