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Amos Genish will be named as Italian incumbent’s chief executive at Thursday board meeting, sources say
TIM is expected to appoint Amos Genish as its new chief executive at a board meeting on Thursday.
Vivendi CEO Arnaud de Puyfontaine is also likely to be confirmed as TIM chairman at the meeting, Reuters reported, citing a number of unnamed sources close to the situation.
Genish currently serves as the Italian incumbent’s general manager for operations, a role he took on two months ago after the telco parted company with former CEO Flavio Cattaneo.
Genish joined TIM from Vivendi, where he served as chief convergence officer.
The management changes were driven by major shareholder Vivendi, which holds a 24% stake in TIM and is currently battling a control ruling made by Italian market watchdog Consob a fortnight ago.
The appointment of Genish to the CEO role is being viewed by industry watchers as further evidence of Vivendi’s power at the telco.
Consob adjudged the French firm to exercise de facto control over TIM, formerly known as Telecom Italia, because it has sufficient voting power to control the board and the direction of shareholder meetings.
Vivendi and TIM have consistently played down the former’s influence, and TIM has confirmed that it will launch a legal challenge to the Consob ruling.
In the meantime, the Italian government is likely to impose a financial penalty on Vivendi for breaching control regulations.
Officials are due to meet on Thursday to discuss the fine, which Reuters‘ sources say is unlikely to exceed €300 million.
