Grameenphone's net profit soared 55.7 percent year-on-year to Tk 790 crore in the second quarter of this year on the back of higher revenue and operating efficiency.

The country's lone listed mobile operator reported revenue of Tk 3,240 crore during the quarter, up 15.71 percent year-on-year.

The industry was very competitive during the quarter, especially on the subscriber acquisition front, said Michael Patrick Foley, chief executive officer of Grameenphone, while unveiling the operator's second quarter earnings report.

During the quarter the operator's customer base grew 2.9 percent to stand at 6.16 crore on June 30.

“Amid this environment we were able to deliver healthy growth both in data and voice segments,” he added.

At the end of the quarter, the operator had 2.7 crore active mobile subscribers.

“The revenue growth and normalised earnings growth for the period is a reflection of our committed focus on driving growth with efficiency,” said Dilip Pal, chief financial officer of Grameenphone.

The country's leading mobile operator also declared interim dividend at the rate of 105 percent of paid-up capital.

Its earnings per share during the quarter stood at Tk 5.87.

Foley went on to sound out his concerns about the country's telecom regulatory regime and the taxation policy.

He is hopeful that meaningful consultation between the stakeholders and the government on the matters of 4G licence, spectrum neutrality/auction, historical SIM tax claims and consumer consumption taxes will lead to a positive outcome and a more predictable environment for investors.

“The mobile industry is a great FDI success story for Bangladesh. We need to work together so that continued FDI for our industry and for others interested in investing in Bangladesh remains attractive,” he said.

Grameenphone invested Tk 330 crore during the quarter for 3G as well as 2G coverage expansion and customer experience enrichment.

It added 141 2G and 225 3G sites, taking the cumulative site numbers to 12,363 for 2G and 11,557 for 3G.

During the quarter, the company contributed Tk 1,640 crore to the national exchequer, comprising 50.6 percent of total revenue, in the form of taxes, VAT, duties and licence fees.

Grameenphone shares traded between Tk 350 and Tk 367 yesterday before closing at Tk 365.10.