Grameenphone has seen a 6.0 per cent increase in profits year-on-year in the third quarter of the year despite a regulatory ban on SIM sales amid complaints about the quality of services.
Earnings per share rose to Tk 6.72 in the July-September quarter from Tk 6.34 a year earlier, according to the company’s third-quarter report released on Thursday. Data use per customer rose 52 per cent year-on-year in the third quarter, supported by the deployment of the spectrum and site rollout, reports bdnews24.com.
However, Bangladesh's largest telecom carrier lost 2.9 million subscribers in the third quarter, taking the subscriber base down to 81.8 million at the end of the quarter.
Its total revenue in the first nine months of the year was Tk 112.9 billion, up 5.7 per cent year-on-year. The total revenue for the third quarter was also up 6.7 per cent, reaching Tk 38.6 billion as subscription and traffic revenue grew 6.9 per cent year-on-year.
Grameenphone profit rises 6.0 per cent even as carrier loses customers after ban on SIM sales
“Grameenphone’s growth momentum continued in the third quarter driven by strong market execution aided by higher revenue and usage in the midst of several external challenges,” said Yasir Azman, CEO of Grameenphone.
“The third quarter was adversely affected by a regulatory ban on SIM sales from the end of June, resulting in a 3.4 per cent QoQ decline in subscriber base,” he said.
“As we continue to engage with our regulator to overcome this restriction, we received a partial withdrawal of the embargo from mid-September, allowing us to resume SIM sales immediately," Azman said.
The company is also facing a "tense macroeconomic climate" in Bangladesh, driven by higher inflation, rising energy prices and austerity measures by the government to curb electricity consumption, he said.
The company spent Tk 2.8 billion on network coverage and expansion in the third quarter.
