Hot on the heels of a merger between its XL Axiata unit and rival Axis in Indonesia, Malaysian giant Axiata is considering further consolidating the market.
CEO Jamaludin Ibrahim reportedly told reporters at a conference in Malaysia that his company is…
Hot on the heels of a merger between its XL Axiata unit and rival Axis in Indonesia, Malaysian giant Axiata is considering further consolidating the market.
CEO Jamaludin Ibrahim reportedly told reporters at a conference in Malaysia that his company is open to further consolidation, adding the telco is restricting itself to “Asean or South Asia because we want to do well within this region”.
Axiata also remains interested in entering Myanmar following its failed attempt to secure a mobile licence in the country earlier this year. The company lost out to Qatar’s Ooredoo and Norway’s Telenor.
Its debut in the once-isolationist nation could take the form of a partnership with existing operators, Ibrahim suggested.
Yesterday, it was announced that Ooredoo has reached an infrastructure agreement with Digicel for the construction and lease of towers in Myanmar. Telenor could join the agreement.
French telco Orange is also interested in a slice of the Myanmar market, saying recently it would be eager to partner with state-owned MPT to help develop telecoms in the country.
Commenting on the XL Axiata/Axis deal, Ibrahim said the rationale for the deal was to gain access to more spectrum. The US$865m deal was rubberstamped by the Indonesian government earlier this week. It marks one of the first consolidation deals in the country’s crowded mobile market.
Axiata is one of the largest Asian operators, with a presence in nine countries. It claims to have more than 200 million customers.
