NAIROBI, June 27 (Reuters) – Safaricom (SCOM.NR) has appointed Wim Vanhelleputte as chief executive officer of its Ethiopia business from September, an internal memo seen by Reuters on Tuesday showed.

Vanhelleputte, who joins from South Africa’s MTN Group where he served in various roles over the years, including as chief executive of MTN Uganda, will replace Anwar Soussa, who will leave his post at the end of next month.

The Belgian national will be in charge of delivering the company’s ambitious growth targets in the vast market where it started operations last year.

Apart from signing on new subscribers, Safaricom is also introducing its M-Pesa financial services in the next few months, after securing a financial licence in May.

The memo announcing Vanhelleputte’s appointment was signed by group CEO Peter Ndegwa.

Reporting by Duncan Miriri;
Editing by Alison Williams and Mark Potter

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