Nokia has denied reports that it’s looking to replace CEO Pekka Lundmark.

The Finnish vendor has denied claims that it is actively looking for a new CEO, following a report by the Financial Times (FT) yesterday (September 12).

The publication reported that Nokia has approached potential candidates for the position, while at least one headhunter has been appointed, according to people familiar with the situation.

However, Nokia has distanced itself from the reports.

"The board fully supports president and CEO Pekka Lundmark and is not undergoing a process to replace him," the Finnish vendor said in a statement.

Shareholders at the company have grown frustrated at the vendor’s financial performance and the vendor’s ability to increase its revenues, even amid Huawei’s widespread ban across several Western markets.

Revenues at Nokia are lower now than back in 2016 when it acquired French rival Alcatel-Lucent in an all-share deal worth €15.6 billion ($17.27bn).

“The current CEO has not got to grips with the growth problem. The top line has not increased since the Alcatel-Lucent takeover,” said a shareholder as reported by the FT.

Lundmark has been CEO at Nokia since 2020. He first joined Nokia in 1990 as an account manager, before leaving in 2000.

Nokia, which has previously bemoaned weaker demand for its 5G equipment in North America and Europe, last year announced it will cut 14,000 jobs, equivalent to 16 percent of its workforce, in an effort to reduce costs.

In July, Nokia reported Q2 operating profit of €423 million ($468m), a 32 percent year-on-year decline.

Last month, Nokia denied reports that it plans to sell its $10bn mobile network business to Samsung.

It recently sold its submarine cable unit, Alcatel Submarine Networks, to the French state in a deal that valued the business at €350 million ($374.2m).

Nokia has also been in the market for acquisitions, paying $2.3 billion for optical networking vendor Infinera.