Chief executive officer of the Digicel Group Oliver Coughlan will step down from his role come December, after staying on for an extra year to oversee the restructuring of the telecoms giant.

Coughlan, who was due tor retire at the end of last year, according to an Irish Times article, has been with Digicel for more than nine years, during which he managed the group’s Pacific business before leading the Caribbean and Central American operations.

Commenting on Coughlan’s management style, Digicel Chairman Denis O’Brien described the CEO as demonstrating a “calm, capable and friendly demeanour” that allowed the business to “flourish and grow” in the face of difficulty.

“There is no doubt that Oliver has done a terrific job,” chairman stated, adding: “Under his leadership. we were able to launch our digital operator strategy, divest the Pacific arm…in a sale to Telstra, navigate COVID-19 pandemic and return the business to growth.”

Coughlan will be replaced by Chief Operating Officer Maarten Boute, which will be acting as CEO on an interim basis. Boute has been with Digicel for the past 14 years and has been working as chief operating officer over the last eight months.

“As Maarten steps into this interim role, I have every confidence in his ability to successfully lead the company during this time,” the Irish Times file quotes O’Brien.

At the same time, O’Brien is preparing to announce his successor as chairman of Digicel in the “coming weeks”, when the conclusion of a debt-restructuring process will reduce his stake in the regional telecoms operation. The chairman, who will keep about 10 per cent equity after the restructuring, indicated in a note announcing the leadership changes, that he “will remain as director and shareholder of the company”.

The restructuring of Digicel, which is now in its final phase, will see US$1.7 billion in debt written off and a consortium of bondholders taking control of the Caribbean telecoms group. Though making progress to reduce its debt from US$7 billion in 2019 to $3.12 billion by end-2023, Digicel is now making its third attempt to control its borrowings in the last five years.

Under the terms of the restructuring, O’Brien has received warrants to acquire another 10 per cent stake in the company, after the completion of the exercise. According to a valuation from debt ratings agency Fitch, Digicel Group will have an initial equity value of $375 million after the debt-restructuring process.