Ravinder Takkar to cease work as Vi CEO next month

The nation's third-largest telecom recently changed its top management, just as the industry is all set to roll-out 5G later this year with the spectrum auction underway.

At the conclusion of his three-year term on August 18, Vodafone Idea(Vi) managing director and chief executive Ravinder Takkar will resign from his position, the company announced in a regulatory statement.

Akshaya Moondra, the current chief financial officer for Vodafone Idea, will take over for Takkar August 19 onward and serve as CFO for a three-year term, the firm announced following a board meeting.

Nevertheless, Takkar will remain a non-executive and non-independent director on Vi's board after his present term is done.

The hiring of a new chief financial officer will be disclosed by Vodafone Idea when appropriate, said the company. The nation's third-largest telecom recently changed its top management, just as the industry is all set to roll-out 5G later this year with the spectrum auction underway.

Himanshu Kapania, Chairman, Vodafone Idea Limited, said, “The Board would like to thank Ravinder for his solid leadership of Vodafone Idea over the last three years. He has steered the company through the world’s largest telecom integration and made the company a future-fit Digital Telecom player. We are pleased to welcome Akshaya Moondra as our new CEO. He is well versed with the Vodafone Idea business context, and I am confident that he will successfully steer the company through the next phase of development and help unlock its full potential.”

The proposed conversion of the government's interest owed on Vi's debt into shares also occurs before the management change. The government will own nearly 33 percent of Vi, making it the largest shareholder. Following which the equity of Vi will drop from approximately 75 percent to 50 percent.