Alternative network operator and ISP Airband, which has a target of reaching 400,000 premises in UK rural areas via a mix of fixed wireless access (FWA) and full fibre (FTTP) networks by 2026, has today announced the appointment of Kash Rahman as its new Managing Director. But the company’s CEO and Founder, Redmond Peel, is standing down.
The operator, which has been going through a period of restructuring that disrupted some builds and caused redundancies (here and here), has otherwise spent the past few years expanding their network across multiple UK counties, including parts of Wales, the South West, the Midlands, Cheshire and Oxfordshire. Airband has also scooped up various state aid funded contracts, such as around Shropshire, Devon and Somerset.
Despite the recent struggles, Airband recently announced that they were able to secure additional investment from abrdn to “accelerate rural broadband expansion” across the West of England (here). To date, abrdn has invested over £200m into growing the Airband business, but such major investments are often followed by changes in senior management, which may partly help to explain today’s news.
The new MD, Kash Rahman, has actually been with Airband since 2020 – as Director of Business Planning, Strategy & Transformation – and was unanimously chosen to take on the leadership of the business by the Senior Management Team, shareholders and non-executive directors. Before joining Airband, Kash studied engineering and has previously held senior positions at various other businesses across the UK and Europe.
Redmond Peel, Non-Executive Director of Airband, said:
“As both Founder and CEO of Airband it has been an honour to lead the business to where it is today, and having worked with Kash for the last few years, I know I am passing its leadership on into very capable hands. I look forward to Airband’s further growth and development in the coming years, as well as supporting the team from my new Non-Executive Director position.”