Vodafone CEO Steps Down
Vodafone Chief Executive Chris Gent steps down next week after more than 17 years at the mobile phone titan, lowering the curtain on the last of the old guard of Europe’s shaken telecoms industry. Gent, 55, is one of the few chief executives whose reputation remains largely unscathed in a market where heads rolled and big-name firms sought financial rescue after one of the most dramatic share price falls on record.
“He was the only person who managed to sail the company successfully through the telecoms storm and remain standing — and he’s not going because the ship has been damaged,” said Jankees Ruizeveld, a senior portfolio manager at Rotterdam-based fund Robeco, which has around 55 billion euros ($63 billion) of equity under management, including Vodafone stock. Continue >>