Rolls-Royce to name former Deloitte partner Kakoullis as CFO

Rolls-Royce Holdings will name former Deloitte partner Panos Kakoullis as its next chief financial officer, with the appointment to be announced as early as Monday, Sky News reported here on Sunday.

The expected arrival of Kakoullis comes at a challenging time for the company, having been hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis as its airline customers have grounded planes.

In January the aero engines maker lowered forecasts for how much its engines will fly this year as tighter coronavirus travel restrictions inflict fresh pain on airlines, saying this would mean a cash outflow of 2 billion pounds ($2.7 billion).

Rolls-Royce told Reuters it was not commenting on the report at this time.

The company has been searching for a new CFO since Stephen Daintith resigned last August, though he has remained at Rolls-Royce for the transition period before taking the CFO role at British online supermarket and technology group Ocado.

Kakoullis was partner at Deloitte UK for more than 20 years and managing director of the global audit and assurance business for four years at the Big Four accounting firm, his LinkedIn profile shows.