Iliad chief Reynaud nominated Tele2 chair

Tele2 proposed Iliad Group CEO Thomas Reynaud (pictured) as its new chair and put forward a pair of other senior executives from the French company for board spots, moves positioned as reflecting its expected ownership structure moving forward.

Changes to the Sweden-based group’s board and chair will be voted on by shareholders at the company’s AGM in May.

The other Iliad executives nominated are deputy CEO Aude Durand and CEO of its Poland businesses Play and UPC Polska Jean-Marc Harion. If approved, Reynaud will replace current Tele2 chair Andrew Barron, who is not standing for re-election.

Tele2’s announcement comes as a deal which would see Freya Investissement become its largest shareholder goes through foreign investment clearances. Freya is an investment entity owned jointly by Iliad Group and NJJ Holding, which are both part of billionaire Xavier Niel’s business empire.

Freya’s deal to buy an almost 20 per cent stake in Tele2 from Kinnevik for SEK13 billion ($1.2 billion) was announced in late February.

The purchase is taking place in three stages, with the first already complete and the second expected to be finalised later in Q2 subject to regulatory approval.

Once the second stage of the buy is complete Freya will be the largest single investor in Tele2, holding almost 29 per cent of voting rights and almost 19 per cent of share capital.

In a statement on his proposed election as chair, Reynaud said: “Freya and Iliad are committed long-term shareholders. As a team we are excited to contribute to this new phase in the history of Tele2, drawing on our deep telecoms experience and shared entrepreneurial mindset, working closely with the board of the company, the CEO, Kjell Johnsen and the management team in the interest of all stakeholders”. Mobile World Live