Former TNK-BP executive has been appointed by Vimpelcom to head its Russian operations. The company is the third largest mobile operator in the country and it had appointed Mikhail Slobodin to head the company in Russia. 

In a press release issued Wednesday, Slobodin previously worked as the executive vice president of strategy and new business development at TNK-BP, the Russian energy company. He would replace Anton Kudryashov, who was at the helm since 2012. Kudryashov would be moving to a position in Vimplecom's executive board, tasked to run business development from the company's Amsterdam office. He would also be responsible for mergers and acquisitions.

The company has assets located worldwide, such as Italy and other emerging countries. Its home market is still Russia, but runs behind rivals MTS, which is listed in the New York Stock Exchange, and Megafon.

The company also hired the former finance head of Verizon Wireless, the largest mobile provider in the United States. This comes as the Russian telecommunications giant moved its shares into the Nasdaq after trading for the last twenty years on the NYSE Euronext.