Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Grameenphone is the largest mobile provider in Bangladesh.


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Company information

Grameenphone at a glance

  • The largest of six mobile operators in the country
  • Offers core voice services and a number of value-added services on both a contract and prepaid basis
  • 35.245 million mobile subscriptions (Q3 2011)
  • 5,000 employees (Q3 2011)
  • Total revenues of NOK 6.492 million (2010)
  • Monthly Mobile ARPU: NOK 16 (Q3 2011)
  • Telenor holds a 55.8 % ownership interest in Grameenphone (as of 31 March 2011)
  • Grameenphone is listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) Ltd. and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Ltd
  • Headquarters are located in Dhaka
  • CEO: Tore Johnsen

Innovative mobile based solutions
Grameenphone has been a pioneer in bringing innovative mobile-based solutions to Bangladesh. Notable among these is the Healthline, a 24 hour medical call centre manned by licensed physicians. Other innovations include Studyline, a call centre-based service providing education related information, Mobicash, for electronic purchase of train tickets, Billpay, for paying bills through mobile phones and over 500 community information centres across Bangladesh. These centres bring affordable Internet access and other information based services to people in rural areas.

Socio-economic impact of mobile financial services
The introduction of mobile financial services to Bangladesh could serve as a solution for 76 % of the population in Bangladesh that are unbanked. The prediction comes from a study conducted by the Boston Consulting Group for Telenor in 2011 on the socio-economic impact of mobile financial services. The Bangladeshi economy stands to gain as well with the introduction of mobile financial services, adding a 2 % increase to the total Gross Domestic Product by 2020. The economical and societal contributions of the new business activity include creating 500,000 new jobs and improving health care access.

Read more about our impact

Historical background
Launched in 1997, Grameenphone was the first Telenor venture in the Asian telecom market. Telenor and its partners have boosted network capacity and extended coverage to new and often remote areas, connecting millions of previously unconnected people.

Analytical information
For detailed information on regulatory matters, network, licenses and competitors, see our business descriptions for Grameenphone

Company Website
Visit the Grameenphone website

Key figures (NOK in millions)

 3rd quarterFirst three quartersYear
2011
2010
2011
2010
2010
Revenues
Subscription and traffic
1 458
1 496
4 377
4 251
5 691
Interconnect revenues
166
174
484
475
644
Other mobile revenues
8
5
20
14
19
Non-mobile revenues
43
45
143
106
139
Total revenues
1 676
1 721
5 025
4 846
6 492
EBITDA before other items
972
892
2 665
2 410
3 212
Operating profit
710
519
1 798
1 321
1 763
EBITDA before other items/Total revenues (%)
58,0
51,8
53,0
49,7
49,5
Capex
333
120
758
391
734
No. of subscriptions - Change in quarter/Total (in thousands):
1 421
2 199
35 245
28 655
29 971
ARPU - monthly (NOK)
16
20
16
21
20
Exchange rate
0,0758
0,0878
0,0868