Telstra's Asia troubles

David Thodey is having a tough time keeping the group together.

Owen Raszkiewicz

Owen Raszkiewicz is a Motley Fool Contributor. Owen has been a Contributor since 2013, having also spent time as a Fool writer/analyst. He also worked as an Investment Analyst at Zenith Investment Partners, Australia's top research house specialising in managed funds. Owen has appeared on Channel 10's The Project and was invited on the BBC. He holds a Masters of Applied Finance, Masters of Financial Planning, Bachelor of Technology, Advanced Diploma of Financial Services and Diploma of Mortgage Broking Management. In addition, Owen has passed Level 1 of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Program. He has taken the Banking + Finance Oath (BFO). When he is not writing, Owen is Managing Director of Rask Finance, an Australian financial education company. You can email him: [email protected].

Published August 29, 2013 2:10 pm AEST

Telstra's (ASX: TLS) China chief executive Chen Xaiowei left the company's top position in April this year sighting "personal reasons".

It has left a hole in the company's Asian strategy where it hopes to continue to expand its presence. Ms Chen was responsible for the company's growth and operations in China but only stayed in the position for two years. When she was appointed in May 2011, it was described as a 'significant milestone' for the company.

According to the Australian Financial Review another board member, Tim Chen, also stepped away from his role to pursue other opportunities but came back only a month later at the request of CEO David Thodey.

Telstra's continued long-term growth prospects centre on its ability to grow revenues throughout Asia. In its most recent full-year report the company announced an additional 425,000 mobile subscribers in Hong-Kong alone, taking the total number of international subscribers to 3.9 million. In addition the company's submarine cable assets are key for its relationship with several Asian countries.

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Motley Fool contributor Owen Raszkiewicz does not have a financial interest in any of the mentioned companies.

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