Chris Dehring, chairman of Cable & Wireless Communications’ (LON:CWC) Jamaican unit Lime and the group’s senior vice president for government and regulatory affairs, is leaving on 30 September after six years with the company.
Chris Dehring, chairman of Cable & Wireless Communications’ (LON:CWC) Jamaican unit Lime and the group’s senior vice president for government and regulatory affairs, is leaving on 30 September after six years with the company.
Dehring (pictured) played a key role in regulatory negotiations on CWC’s US$1.85bn acquisition of Columbus International, which closed in March but is now being investigated by the Caribbean Community and Common Market (Caricom). The regulator announced in early July that after a preliminary examination of the agreement, it had decided an investigation was warranted. The regulator said it would consult with relevant member states to agree on its jurisdiction to review the deal.
CWC said in a statement that Dehring is leaving “to return to the forays of entrepreneurship”, but did not provide further details.
CWC CEO Phil Bentley described Dehring as “a key leader” in the business “spearheading, the largest market in the Caribbean for over six years as chairman, and building a solid foundation to drive growth and profitability in one of our most important markets”.
Bentley personally thanked Dehring for helping win support across the Caribbean for the Columbus acquisition, which he described as a “game changer.”
CWC said Gehring had orchestrated new legislation and regulatory rulings, paving the way for the company to grow its mobile customer base from some 200,000 to its current 900,000. The company also credited him for reviving the Lime brand (now Flow).
Gehring commented: “Coupled with the turnaround and upward trajectory of CWC in Jamaica and the Caribbean, I feel like my mission has been accomplished and it is time to move onto my next adventure”.
Gehring worked as a marketing specialist and entrepreneur before joining CWC, where he has also served as chief marketing officer. He was one of the founders of Jamaica’s first investment bank and the Caribbean’s first cable sports channel.
CWC agreed its purchase of Columbus from Clearwater Holdings (Barbados), CVBI Holdings (Barbados), Columbus Holding, Brendan Paddick and others on 6 November 2014.
CWC has said that its agreed disposal of its 49% stake in national incumbent TSTT, a regulatory condition for the larger deal, is now underway with bids due by the end of the year.