UK’s Domino’s appoints Neil Smith as permanent CFO

(Reuters) – Domino’s Pizza Group on Wednesday appointed interim Chief Financial Officer Neil Smith to the role on a permanent basis to replace David Bauernfeind, who died in a snorkelling accident last year.

Britain’s largest pizza delivery chain also appointed http://pdf.reuters.com/htmlnews/htmlnews.asp?i=43059c3bf0e37541&u=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20200902:nRSB7417Xa former Taco Bell CFO Natalia Barsegiyan and Lynn Fordham, managing partner of private equity firm Larchpoint Capital, to the board as independent non-executive directors.

Smith, who joined as interim CFO in April, earlier served as the CFO of British pub operator Ei Group from 2011 until it was recently taken over by Stonegate Pub Company.

His appointment comes a few months after the company named former Costa Coffee Chief Executive Officer Dominic Paul as its top boss and Jim Beam maker Beam Suntory’s executive Matt Shattock as its chairman.

The new management will be tasked with overseeing the sale of the company’s loss-making international operations and resolving a profit-sharing row with its franchisees.

The company, a franchise of U.S.-based Domino’s Pizza Inc , said Smith became permanent CFO on Sept. 1 and will join the board on Sept. 16.

(Reporting by Tanishaa Nadkar in Bengaluru; Editing by Amy Caren Daniel)