British American Tobacco (BAT) has announced that Soraya Benchikh will step down as chief financial officer (CFO) and from the board of directors with effect from 26 August 2025, after serving just over a year in the role.
Benchikh, who rejoined BAT as CFO in May 2024 following senior roles at Diageo, will remain available to support the transition until 31 December 2025. The company has launched a search for her permanent successor.
Javed Iqbal, currently BAT’s Director of Digital and Information, has been appointed interim CFO. Iqbal previously acted as interim finance director between May 2023 and April 2024, before Benchikh’s return to the company.
“Soraya has made a significant contribution to BAT, having worked in various roles within the group over many years,” BAT chief executive Tadeu Marroco said.
“As we set out at our recent results, our performance in the first half of the year was slightly ahead of our expectations, and we are firmly on track to deliver our full year guidance. With the right strategy we intend to continue to deliver on the profitable transformation of BAT, reflected in our stated ambitions for 2026 and beyond."
“We are firmly on track to deliver our full-year guidance and continue our profitable
Reflecting on her time as CFO, Benchikh said: “I am proud of my role in the significant progress since I joined BAT, as reflected in our recent results. Further embedding financial discipline and putting New Categories on a path to accretive margins and sustainable profitability have been key contributions to that progress.
“Now is the right time for me to move on to my next transformation,” she added.
BAT reported a steady first half for 2025 last month, with revenues slightly ahead of expectations and signs of renewed momentum in its US and New Category operations, particularly through its flagship nicotine pouch brand, Velo.
BAT will provide its next trading update in December.