XCharge appoints Albina Iljasov as Co-CEO for Europe and cybersecurity

XCharge has promoted its Head of Europe to Co-Chief Executive Officer, giving her oversight of European operations and the company's cybersecurity programme.

By The Datatech Times Editorial Team
A modern office space features curved light wood desks with ergonomic chairs and computer monitors, a large video wall displaying blue analytical data, tall windows, and linear ceiling lights.

XCHG Limited, the Nasdaq-listed EV charging and energy storage company, has appointed Albina Iljasov as Co-Chief Executive Officer with effect from 1 June 2026. She joins existing Co-CEO Yifei Hou in the dual-leadership structure, taking primary responsibility for XCharge's European operations and its information security and cybersecurity initiatives.

Iljasov has been with XCharge since 2021, most recently as Head of Europe, where she led the company's commercial expansion across the region. Before that she held sales and business development roles at the firm, and prior to joining XCharge she worked at EVBox and E.ON Drive in European business development and regional sales.

The appointment

Yifei Hou said Iljasov had been "instrumental in building and scaling" XCharge's European footprint, and that her understanding of the European market positioned her to advance the company's cybersecurity priorities alongside its international growth agenda.

Iljasov's remit is notable for combining regional operations with a dedicated cybersecurity mandate, a combination that reflects growing regulatory pressure on operators of EV charging infrastructure in Europe. Under the EU's NIS2 Directive, which extended mandatory cyber-resilience obligations to a broader set of critical infrastructure operators from October 2024, charging network operators serving significant volumes of users may fall within scope depending on their classification by member-state authorities. Assigning a C-suite executive explicit ownership of cybersecurity compliance signals that XCharge is treating the obligation as a board-level priority rather than a purely technical function.

Market context

The European EV charging market is expanding rapidly but remains fragmented, with a mix of utility-backed networks, independent charge-point operators and hardware-focused vendors competing for fleet, retail and public-space contracts. XCharge positions itself as an integrated hardware and energy management provider, competing with companies including ABB E-mobility, Alfen, Wallbox and a number of well-funded platform startups.

The co-CEO model is relatively uncommon at listed technology companies, though it has precedent at companies managing distinct geographic or functional divisions simultaneously.

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