In the eyes of the ordinary public, the name Safaricom brings to life great memories of the late Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore and paints a picture of a multibillion company that is well managed whose profits keep growing year on year. But behind those billion of after-tax profits is a great team led by Sateesh Kamath, Safaricom Chief Financial Officer.
Safaricom PLC today issued a statement to inform the public that CFO Sateesh Kamath is set to exit the giant telco at the end of the month after his three and a half year tenure.
“He is credited with, among many other achievements, helping to build Safaricom shareholders’ value by 50 per cent to Ksh 1.2trillion and improving business performance through Fit for Future Initiatives adding 6 percentage points on EBIT margin. He played a key role in the completion of the acquisition of M-Pesa Joint Venture from Vodafone and purchase of critical spectrum while ensuring efficient use of the company’s funds,” noted Safaricom Chief Executive Officer Peter Ndegwa.
Sateesh will be taking up a higher ranking position in Safaricom’s mother company, Vodafone as its Business CFO effective July 1.
Here are little details about CFO Sateesh Kamath.
1.Sateesh from Mahatma Gandhi University with a Bachelor of Commerce (First Class Honours). He is also a qualified Accountant from the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India.
2. Before joining Safaricom Kenya, he worked for Vodacom Tanzania Ltd, where he was the Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director on the board of Vodacom Tanzania.
3. Over the last 12 years, he has held senior positions spearheading operations in Vodafone Ltd locally and globally including London, Australia, with hands-on experience in both mature and emerging markets across Asia, Europe and Africa.
4. He helped steer Safaricom after the death of Bob Collymore.
