“From his experience leading Deutsche Telekom, Mr. Ricke is uniquely qualified to counsel Exigen Capital as we pursue investments in this industry,” said Shenkman. “We could not be more pleased that he has joined our advisory board.”
Ricke served as CEO of Deutsche Telekom AG from 2002 to 2006, where he was responsible for the debt reduction and restructuring program that set the stage for the company’s return to profitability. Prior to his appointment to CEO, he served as COO for Deutsche Telekom's mobile and internet business. From 1998 to 2001, Ricke served first as CEO of Deutsche Telekom’s German mobile subsidiary, T-Mobile Deutschland GmbH, and then as CEO of T-Mobile International AG. In this role he oversaw the integration of a variety of international mobile businesses including Voicestream in the US.
Prior to Deutsche Telekom, in 1990, Ricke co-founded and was CEO of Talkline GmbH, which provided service provisioning in mobile communications to the German telecommunications market. The company was successfully sold to Tele Danmark AS in 1997. Ricke began his career at Bertelsmann AG, Guetersloh and shortly thereafter became Marketing Director of their Scandinavian sister company.
Ricke, who studied economics at the European Business School in Wiesbaden and Paris and at the American Graduate School of International Management in Phoenix, AZ, is a member of the board of Generali S.p.A. and Saudi Oger Telecom Ltd, as well as a member of the supervisory board of United Internet AG. He is active in the MENA Region as chairman of the International Advisory Board of Delta Partners, a Dubai-based advisory and private equity firm. He is also the non-executive chairman of Apollo Investment Europe, a European mezzanine fund, as well as a board member and co-investor at Kabel Baden-Württemberg GmbH and Easy Cash GmbH.
“These are challenging times for telecom companies, which need to find new operational efficiencies if they are to survive and grow,” said Ricke. “Exigen Capital’s investment model of converting operational functions into stand-alone businesses is very well suited to helping telecoms meet the current challenge.”
About Exigen Capital
Exigen Capital is a Private Equity firm that invests to transform necessary but non-differentiating business functions into independent, profitable businesses; as well as in the technology and execution capabilities required to effect transformation. Greg Shenkman is managing partner. Its offices are located in San Francisco, New York, and Zurich, Switzerland.
For more information about Exigen Capital, please visit http://www.exigencapital.com.
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