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Disney appoints Josh D’Amaro as new CEO, succeeding Bob Iger
BURBANK: The Walt Disney Company has named theme parks chief Josh D’Amaro as its next chief executive officer, marking the end of an era and the start of a carefully scripted new chapter for the entertainment giant.
D’Amaro, 54, will formally take over from Bob Iger on 18 March 2026, following Disney’s Annual Meeting. The board’s decision was unanimous, a rare show of confidence that underlines just how central D’Amaro has become to Disney’s modern story.
For the past five years, D’Amaro has run Disney Experiences, the company’s biggest business by revenue. It is the division behind the magic kingdoms, cruise ships and resorts that collectively pull in around 36 billion dollars a year and employ nearly 185,000 people worldwide. Under his watch, Disney has embarked on the largest theme park expansion in its history, pairing beloved characters with new technology and record guest satisfaction.
Disney chairman James Gorman said D’Amaro brings together creative instinct and operational muscle, a combination the board believes is vital as Disney navigates a fast-changing entertainment landscape. Bob Iger echoed that sentiment, praising D’Amaro’s ability to blend imagination with discipline, a hallmark of Disney at its best.
Alongside the CEO announcement, Disney also unveiled a new creative structure. Dana Walden, currently co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, will become president and chief creative officer, a newly created role. Reporting directly to D’Amaro, Walden will oversee storytelling across the entire company, from film and television to streaming, parks and beyond.
Creativity, Iger noted, remains Disney’s beating heart, and Walden’s appointment is designed to keep that pulse strong while aligning it more closely with business goals.
Iger himself is not disappearing just yet. After steering Disney through two decades of growth, disruption and reinvention, and returning in 2022 to steady the ship, he will stay on as senior advisor and a board member until his retirement at the end of 2026. His recent tenure has focused on restoring financial discipline, reshaping streaming, sharpening ESPN’s digital future and accelerating growth in parks and experiences.
D’Amaro, a Disney veteran of nearly 30 years, joined the company in 1998 and has held senior roles across finance, strategy, marketing and operations. He has overseen landmark attractions such as Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, Avengers Campus and World of Frozen, with more on the way including new lands inspired by Monsters, Inc., Cars and Disney Villains, plus a planned theme park in Abu Dhabi.
“I am immensely grateful for the trust placed in me,” D’Amaro said, adding that Disney’s greatest strength has always been its people and its stories.
The appointment follows a long and deliberate succession process launched in 2023, with D’Amaro and Walden both undergoing extensive preparation and mentorship. For Disney, the message is clear. This is not a sudden plot twist, but a handover carefully written well before the curtain rises on the next act.
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Flipkart completes reverse flip to India ahead of IPO
Walmart-owned e-commerce giant shifts domicile from Singapore to Bengaluru
MUMBAI: Flipkart has completed its restructuring to move its parent company from Singapore back to India, marking a key milestone as the Walmart-owned marketplace prepares for a potential initial public offering on Indian stock exchanges, ET reported, citing people aware of the matter.
The move, often referred to as a “reverse flip”, relocates the company’s legal home to India and aligns its corporate structure more closely with its largest market. It also clears an important regulatory step for Flipkart as it explores listing plans.
As part of the restructuring, several Singapore-based entities have been merged into Flipkart Internet Private Limited, which will now serve as the main holding company for the entire group.
The consolidation brings a number of major businesses directly under the Indian parent company. These include fashion platform Myntra, logistics arm Ekart, travel booking platform Cleartrip, healthcare marketplace Flipkart Health, and fintech venture Super.money.
Under the new structure, global investors including Walmart, Microsoft, SoftBank, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will hold their stakes directly in the Indian entity rather than through an overseas holding company.
The redomiciliation required approval from the Indian government because Chinese technology company Tencent owns around a 5 to 6 per cent stake in Flipkart. Under Press Note 3, investments from countries sharing a land border with India require prior government clearance.
Flipkart had already secured approval from the National Company Law Tribunal in December. With the latest clearance from the central government, the company has now obtained all the regulatory approvals needed to complete the relocation, ET reported earlier.
Flipkart had originally shifted its holding structure to Singapore in 2011 to tap global capital more easily. However, as India’s capital markets have matured, several start-ups have begun returning their domiciles to the country ahead of public listings. Companies such as Razorpay, Groww, and Meesho have taken similar steps.
The company is now expected to move ahead with its IPO preparations and has begun early discussions with merchant bankers. According to people familiar with the matter, Flipkart could file its draft prospectus later this year, setting the stage for what may become one of the most closely watched listings in India’s e-commerce sector.
Flipkart has been majority-owned by Walmart since 2018, when the US retail giant acquired a 77 per cent stake in the company for $16 billion in one of the largest e-commerce deals globally.
