Page 45 - SAMENA Trends - December 2023
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REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES  SAMENA TRENDS

        PTCL Chief Explains Acquisition of Telenor Pakistan


        President and Group CEO, PTCL and PTML,   that the sector has seen erosion of value   advancements as well such as 5G, AI, IOT,
        Hatem  Bamatraf  stressed  that  Pakistan’s   because  there  are  so  many players  oper-  and  improvement  in  infrastructure.  While
        telecom sector is just big enough for three   ating in the space. “Relooking and consol-  talking  to Business  Recorder, PTCL  Chief
        operators to create  value. Bamatraf was   idating  the  market  into three  players  will   Financial  Officer  Nadeem  Khan  said  syn-
        speaking  to an audience during an event   actually protect the value,” Bamatarf said.   ergies will be the biggest drivers for profit-
        in Islamabad that was held after PTCL for-  He said the change in the structure of the   ability for PTCL. As a group, he said that it
        mally announced its acquisition of Telenor   market was due since the four companies   is estimating Rs45 billion EBITDA after the
        Pakistan. In a notice to the Pakistan Stock   have not been in a healthy position. He said   Telenor acquisition immediately, which will
        Exchange earlier in  the  day, PTCL said  it   he was expecting the approval of the trans-  improve profitability and add to synergies.
        has entered into a Share Purchase Agree-  action by the regulators to be quick as well,   “Call it cash flow if you don’t like EBITDA. It
        ment (SPA) with the shareholders of Tele-  stressing that this is actually a correction   will be equal, in just over two years, to the in-
        nor Pakistan (Private) Limited (TPL) for the   to the market. “We don’t want to drag it for   vestment of Rs108 billion,” he said. “We will
        acquisition  of 100%  shares  for  Rs108  bil-  months,” he said. Baratarf said that many   reduce operating and capital expenditures,
        lion (roughly $385 million). While respond-  will  benefit  from  this  transaction  “but  the   and we will be able to serve a much larger
        ing to a query from Business Recorder at   primary beneficiary would be the custom-  customer  base,  offer much  better  cover-
        the event in Islamabad, Bamatraf explained   er”. He added this will lead to technology   age and quality. Better coverage is going to
                                                                                 drive both the topline and EBITDA,” he earli-
                                                                                 er said in the program. On the issue of how
                                                                                 payment will be made for Telenor transac-
                                                                                 tions and whether the State Bank will allow
                                                                                 such a  huge  transaction  in  dollars,  Khan
                                                                                 said their investors are foreigners so there
                                                                                 will be no issue as such, hinting that pay-
                                                                                 ments will be made abroad from investors
                                                                                 or financiers abroad. When this transaction
                                                                                 materializes,  the  consolidated  company
                                                                                 will command a share of 37% in the cellular
                                                                                 mobile operators’ space (adding up market
                                                                                 share of Ufone and Telenor as per Pakistan
                                                                                 Telecommunication Authority (PTA) data),
                                                                                 which is almost equal to Jazz, the current
                                                                                 market leader in Pakistan.




        Bangladesh's Mobile Users Reach 190.36 million


        The  total  number  of Bangladesh's mobile
        phone  users  hit  over  190  million  at  the
        end  of November this  year,  showed the
        latest  statistics  of the  country's  telecom
        regulator. According  to data  from the
        Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory
        Commission  (BTRC),  the  number of
        subscribers  in  the  South  Asian  country
        reached 190.36 million in November 2023.
        Currently, Bangladesh  has  four mobile
        companies,  three  of  which  are  foreign-
        backed cell phone operators. The number of
        subscribers of mobile operators - Grameen
        Phone, Robi  Axiata,  Banglalink  Digital
        Communications and Teletalk Bangladesh
        - stood at 82.14 million, 58.38 million, 43.38   end of November, the BTRC data showed.   subscribers was 180.20 million at the end
        million and 6.46 million respectively at the   The number of Bangladesh's mobile phone   of December 2022.


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