Digicel has named John Townsend its new chief financial officer (CFO).

In a statement today (August 25), Digicel noted that, immediately prior to joining Digicel, Townsend was CFO – Business Group at Verizon, and also served in the CFO capacity across various areas of the business for roughly the past 10 years.

“He also worked as chief financial officer for Vodafone Europe, UK and Australia and earned his BA (Econ) Hons in accounting and business finance from The University of Manchester,” Digicel said.

Over the span of his career as a CFO, Townsend has gained experience in business and consumer operations, wireless, wireline, enterprise solutions, supply chain management and logistics, carrier relations and new business models, making him an all-rounder when it comes to the business of telecommunications.

He will replace David Lomas as Digicel’s CFO.

Oliver Coughlan, Digicel Group CEO, said: “We are happy to have John joining the team and I know that he will receive a warm Digicel welcome. John has worked at two of the world’s largest telecommunications companies, Verizon and Vodafone, with responsibility for billions of dollars in revenue, so his financial background, coupled with his extensive experience in telecoms, will serve him well as he gets to know our business and the Caribbean, and we expect that his fresh perspective will serve us well in turn.”

Coughlan added: “And as David leaves us, we also want to thank him for the work done over the last three and a half years and to wish him all the best going forward.”

Commenting on his appointment, Townsend said: “For over 20 years, Digicel has been delivering quality service in the Caribbean, keeping the region connected to the people and things they love most. I am excited to be joining the team and look forward to the great work we will do together.”