Tony Bates, Michael Leitner appointed to Digicel board
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Digicel on Tuesday announced the appointment of Tony Bates and Michael Leitner to its board of directors.
The appointments come as Digicel continues to execute its long-term strategy focused on operational resilience, disciplined capital allocation and sustainable performance across the Caribbean market.
Bates brings more than three decades of senior financial and operational leadership across global telecommunications and media businesses. He previously served as group chief financial officer of Inmarsat, where he worked closely with the chief executive on business performance, capital structure and major transactions, including refinancing initiatives and the company’s sale to Viasat. Over his career, Bates has led complex transformation, capital restructure and operating programmes in highly capital-intensive and regulated environments.
Leitner is a partner and senior managing director at Stonepeak and serves on the boards of several of their communications and digital infrastructure portfolio companies. His career spans growth, restructuring and turnaround assignments across fibre, wireless, satellite, data centers, and cloud services, including executive roles at BlackRock, Tennenbaum Capital Partners, WilTel, 360networks, GlobeNet Communications, and Microsoft. Leitner has served on more than 25 public and private company boards.
Chairman of Digicel, Rajeev Suri said, “Tony and Michael bring perspectives that are directly relevant to Digicel’s current priorities. Tony’s experience in financial leadership and execution, alongside Michael’s background in digital infrastructure and capital stewardship, adds depth to the board’s oversight as the group continues to execute its strategy.”
Chief Executive Officer of Digicel, Marcelo Cataldo said, “Digicel is operating in capital-intensive, regulated markets where execution and discipline matter. Tony and Michael have spent their careers navigating those environments, and their judgment will be valuable as we continue to build a resilient business focused on long-term performance.”
The appointments went into effect February 1, 2026.
