Moving swiftly to refute media reports that Chairman of Digicel Group Rajeev Suri has been asked to resign his position, Digicel issued a statement on the matter.

The statement read: ‘ We do not comment on chatter or hearsay. Rajeev Suri remains Chairman of Digicel and has the Board’s full support.

“Rajeev helped steer Digicel through its restructuring after the company came close to bankruptcy under its previous ownership. Since then Digiocel has strengthened its financial position and earned two credit rating upgrades. His leadership continues to be central to our work as we build a Digicel ready for the future.”

Reports are that Suri was asked to step down due to Digicel’s close working relationship with the Chinese tech giant Huawei.  Huawei is one of the most formidable telecommunications companies in the world, making unprecedented strides. At one point, it was set to be the world’s top cell phone maker. The U.S. government has placed a ban on Huawei products entering the world’s biggest economy and will censure those doing business with it.

Both Digicel and Flow have utilised Huawei’s technology.

Digicel was founded by Denis O’Brien and began operations in Jamaica in 2001. It went from a start-up to market leader with a presence in 32 countries across the world. Digicel has been one of the greatest business success stories in Jamaica’s history. It made the cell phone accessible to Jamaicans and redefined marketing in Jamaica. That story cannot be discounted. 

It did accrue a large debt stock as it looked to expand further and utilise new technologies. It moved from 2G to LTE. It also went into media and other non-core businesses. It’s imprint on Jamaica is due to Denis O’Brien and his team.

Rajeev Suri is a former CEO of Nokia. The Indian telco senior executive has been Chairman of Digicel since 2023, replacing Denis O’Brien.

Digicel has recovered since its US$1.7 billion debt-for-equity restructuring exercise, cutting borrowing.

A consortium led by PGIM, Contrarian Capital Management and GoldenTree Asset Management now controls Digicel. They are the primary bondholders. 

Digicel has reduced its borrowing costs by repricing its US$648 million first-lien term loan due in 2032 and lowering the interest rate.