According to DCD, Vantage Towers will appoint Martin Bouchard as its new CEO effective May 1, 2026. Bouchard currently serves as CEO of American Tower Germany, a position he’s held since April 2023. He’ll replace interim CEO Nicolas Mahler, who took over in September after former CEO Christian Hillabrandt joined US tower firm Crown Castle. Mahler will return to his CFO role in May. Bouchard brings more than 25 years of telecom experience, including significant time at Deutsche Telekom and its subsidiary Deutsche Funkturm. Vantage Towers operates 88,000 tower sites across 10 European countries.
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The leadership shuffle continues
This feels like the latest move in a game of musical chairs in the tower industry. Hillabrandt jumps to Crown Castle, Mahler steps in temporarily, and now Bouchard gets the permanent gig. But here’s the thing – the timing is interesting. May 2026 is more than two years away. That’s an unusually long runway for a CEO transition. It suggests either they’re being extremely deliberate about the handover, or there are contractual obligations that need to play out.
An industry veteran takes the helm
Bouchard’s background is basically a who’s who of European telecom infrastructure. Deutsche Telekom, Deutsche Funkturm, and now American Tower Germany – he’s seen the industry from multiple angles. That diverse experience could be exactly what Vantage Towers needs as it navigates the complex European tower landscape. With 88,000 sites across 10 countries, this isn’t a simple operation to manage. His familiarity with both telco and tower company perspectives might give him an edge in negotiating with anchor tenants – including his former employer Vodafone.
Navigating ownership complexity
Let’s talk about the ownership structure, because it’s gotten pretty complicated. Vodafone spun off Vantage Towers in 2020, then sold most of it to a joint venture called Oak Holdings in 2022. Now Oak Holdings owns 89% of Vantage Towers, while Vodafone owns 50% of Oak Holdings. Confused yet? Basically, Vodafone still has significant influence but doesn’t have direct control. Bouchard will need to balance the interests of multiple stakeholders while driving growth. Not an easy task when your biggest customer is also part-owner through multiple layers of ownership.
Where does Vantage go from here?
The European tower market is heating up, and Vantage Towers needs to find its competitive edge. With companies like Cellnex aggressively expanding, Bouchard’s experience at American Tower – one of the global giants – could be invaluable. He’ll need to decide whether to focus on organic growth, pursue acquisitions, or maybe even explore new revenue streams beyond traditional tower leasing. The distributed antenna systems and small cells in their portfolio suggest they’re already thinking beyond just macro towers. But can they execute at scale across 10 different markets with different regulations and competitive dynamics? That’s the billion-euro question.
