France’s Iliad Group names Aude Durand deputy CEO

French telecom operator Iliad Group has promoted Aude Durand to deputy chief executive officer.

Source: Aude Durand

Durand who most recently deputy CEO of Iliad Holding since 2020, was appointed by the telco’s board of directors after a proposal by the company’s CEO, Thomas Reynaud.

She replaces Nicolas Jaeger, the company’s CFO and deputy chief executive officer, who passed away in January.

The group said Jaeger had suddenly passed away, but did not reveal the cause of his death.

The long-serving chief joined the telco in 2007 as head of investor relations and was subsequently appointed group treasurer in 2011. He was later appointed chief financial officer in 2018 and then deputy CEO in 2021.

In her previous role she led several major group projects such as the launches of the Freebox Pop and Ultra, the creation of the Free Proxi local subscriber assistance service and the structural organisation of the group’s data teams.

Durand was also in charge of the Iliad’s artificial intelligence strategy, and in this role, she managed the creation of the Paris-based independent research lab, Kyutai.

The chief is also chairman of Scaleway and Free Pro. She is also a member of the boards of directors of Millicom and Monaco Telecom.

DTVE recently reported Xavier Niel, owner of Iliad Group, is to acquire a 19.8% stake in Swedish operator Tele2 from investment firm, Kinnevik, for approximately €1.16 billion. Kinnevik’s stake in the operator carries 36% of Tele2 voting rights, so the acquisition stands to make telecom tycoon Niel its leading shareholder.

As part of the sale, Niel will own less than 30% of the voting rights in Tele2 into Class B shares which carry one voting right each. The company also joins Iliad and NJJ’s existing European telecommunications operations across France, Italy, Poland, Switzerland, Monaco, Ireland, Cyprus and Malta.

Commenting on the new appointment, Iliad said: “Xavier Niel and Thomas Reynaud would like to extend their heartfelt congratulations to Aude and have full confidence that she will succeed in her new leadership duties.”