Bharti Airtel's Vice Chairman and Managing Director (MD) Gopal Vittal has been appointed as Acting Chairman of GSMA, the global telecommunications industry association, Bharti Airtel announced on Monday. Vittal's appointment in the new role on the GSMA board follows the resignation of Jose Maria Alvares-Pallete, Chairman and CEO of Telefonica, from the Spanish telecom company.
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GSMA Leadership Role
Gopal was recently re-elected as Deputy Chair of the GSMA board, TelecomTalk reported. He has also served the board as a key member for the 2019-2020 term.
"By virtue of this resignation, he is no longer able to continue in the position of the Chair of the GSMA," the GSMA said.
Earlier this month, Telefonica's board appointed Indra's Chairman, Marc Murtra, as its new CEO, replacing Alvarez-Pallete.
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About GSMA
GSMA represents the global telecommunications industry, comprising over 1,100 companies from across the telecom ecosystem, including telecom service providers, handset and device manufacturers, software companies, equipment providers, and internet firms, as well as organisations from adjacent industries.
The GSMA Board consists of 26 members, including senior representatives from global mobile operators and smaller independent operators.