Belgian shipowner Marc Saverys and his sons have been quietly rebuilding their stake in tanker giant Euronav following a major investment by tycoon John Fredriksen last year.

The family, which controls Belgian bulker, tanker and container ship group CMB, helped start Brussels and New York-listed Euronav, which at one point was the tanker division of CMB.

But the clan had scaled back their ownership to a little under 5% last April.