Digicel gets new board
THE RESTRUCTURED telecom Digicel Group has officially announced its new nine-member board, led by Chairman Rajeev Suri and includes Jamaican Mariame Robinson.
The board includes mostly new faces but continues to have the founder and former Chairman Denis O’Brien, now described as an independent director. The statement on the board came on Ash Wednesday, a day of atonement, but also twinned with Valentine’s Day, a day of love.
Other board members are interim CEO Maarten Boute, Rodrigo Diehl, Alberto Griselli, Tarek Robbiati, Rachel Samren, Xiao Song, and Robinson – president of fintec firm Qenta, based in Texas, United States. Before that, she was president of First Global Bank and held positions at Portland Equity.
“O’Brien retains his position as an equity holder in the restructured company and as a member of the board,” according to the release which did not disclose his precise holding.
Interim CEO Boute took over from Oliver Coughlan, who left in December.
Suri stated that the new board is impressive, encompassing significant knowledge in technology, finance, and emerging markets.
“Their diverse skills will be crucial as we leverage Digicel’s robust connectivity, customer relationships, and community initiatives to shape our future,” stated Suri in a release.
Suri was a former CEO of cell phone firm Nokia. In late January, a group of private equity investors acquired majority control of Digicel from O’Brien, who retains an unspecified amount.
It was the result of a bond that Digicel couldn’t fully pay back based on original terms. The largest bondholders negotiated to get their debt converted to equity.
The debt-conversion transaction reduced Digicel’s borrowings to around US$3 billion, from US$4.7 billion.
“O’Brien retains his position as an equity holder
in the restructured company and as a member of the board,” according to the release which did not disclose his precise holding.
It resulted in nearly two-thirds of the voting rights in Digicel ending up in the hands of two investment managers. PGIM Inc will hold 48.4 per cent and Contrarian Capital 16.2 per cent, the new documents indicate. A third private equity fund, GoldenTree Asset Management, will also hold an unknown stake.
Digicel began in 2001 in Jamaica and expanded throughout the region and the Pacific islands. Some US$5 billion of investment was poured into the telecoms network over time.