Telenor Group has announced the formation of Telenor Asia, a more independent regional entity with headquarters in Singapore.
Telenor Asia will take on full oversight and responsibility for the company’s operations in Bangladesh, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Thailand.
“The strengthened team at our Singapore headquarters will add value to our operations and safeguard our interests in the region. This will also help us ensure value creation of our assets, and we will explore structural partnerships or, in the future, a potential IPO,” said Jørgen Rostrup, Head of Telenor Asia.
“The foundation for our continued growth in Asia is how our services help improve people’s lives and empower societies. In a recent survey we conducted of 8,000 people in South and Southeast Asia, a resounding 93 percent said that mobile connectivity improved their quality of life,” he added.
Each market will now have dedicated Investment Management teams. These teams will take on an asset manager role and represent Telenor’s interests in local boards. The team in Singapore will also be strengthened with expertise in finance, operations, risk management, governance, people management, and responsible business.
In 2021, Telenor Asia signed merger agreements in Malaysia and Thailand. These mergers are the largest and second largest in Southeast Asia. When the two mergers are completed, Telenor Asia’s portfolio will comprise leading telco players in three large Asian markets, with more than 200 million customers and $10 billion in revenue.
To achieve a target of $1.2 billion in cash flow by 2025, Telenor Asia will realize synergies from the two mergers and maximize opportunities across three areas:
Increasing mobile adoption and data usage in Bangladesh and Pakistan. There are more than 150 million people in these two countries without mobile devices and 50 percent of the current customer base subscribes to voice services only.
Growing business-to-business (B2B) revenue. The current revenue contribution to Telenor Asia from this sector is around 5 percent, with large growth potential. Throughout the pandemic, when the overall telco sector was contracting, Telenor Asia’s B2B revenue was up by 10 percent.
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