Nick Read

Nick has had an extensive career, across five industry sectors, with a deep knowledge of telecoms. He has had 16+ years operating at board level, with his most recent role being Group CEO of Vodafone plc.

His career at Vodafone spanned 22 years, where he was the CEO for the UK business, followed by the Regional CEO for Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific, then Group CFO & board member, ultimately becoming Group CEO & board member from 2018-2022. He has been a board member of the listed companies – Vodacom (South Africa), Safaricom (Kenya) & Vodafone Qatar – as well subsidiaries in India & Egypt, and joint ventures VHA (Australia), Indus Towers (India) & Vodafone Ziggo (Netherlands).

Prior to Vodafone, he worked for Miller Freeman Worldwide plc as Group CFO and Federal Express Corporation for 10 years in various senior finance roles, including CFO & Vice President Europe Middle East & Africa based in Belgium, as well as Vice President Corporate Strategic Planning in the U.S.A.

He is a non-executive director of Booking Holdings Inc, since 2018 – a global leader in online travel.

He is a Fellow Chartered Management Accountant, and received his BA (Hons) in Accountancy & Finance from Manchester Met. In 2022 he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Business Administration.

He has actively driven diversity & inclusion, having been a United Nations HeForShe champion & United Nations Broadband Commissioner.

Nick joined the Board of Governors on 1 April 2023.