Bell announces CFO’s retirement alongside its Q1 2023 financial results

Bell’s long-time chief financial officer (CFO) will retire come September 1st.

Glen LeBlanc has served as CFO under the BCE banner for the last 18 years.

The announcement comes on the helm of Bell’s Q1 2023 financial results, which show its net income decreased by 15 percent this quarter to $788 million.

However, the company grew its mobile postpaid subscriber count by more than 43,000, a 26 percent increase compared to Q1 2022. Increased subscriber activations through post-pandemic retail traffic, immigration, and 5G growth played a role.

It also added more than 70,000 mobile-connected devices, seeing a nearly 45 percent increase in the category. Revenue for wireless services also increased by 5 percent.

The company reports a loss in its prepaid mobile customer count, which declined by more than 16,000 subscribers. There were “more customer deactivations due in part to attractive promotional offers on postpaid discount brands,” the financial release states.

Bell also reports growth in its fibre internet customer base, with nearly 48,000 new net additions, a 24 percent increase year-over-year.

Mirko Bibic, Bell’s president and CEO, says the company is on track to bring its fibre services to 650,000 locations and its 5G services to 85 percent of the population by the end of the year.

Bell says it will migrate customers under its Distributel brand, which it acquired late last year, to its fibre network “over time.”

The company says it will also “assess” an announcement Rogers made in the morning, dramatically reducing the costs of most of its 5G plans. Rogers was not named but referred to as “one of our competitors.”