GP to focus more on mobile financial services

Jon Fredrik Baksaas

Global telecom giant Telenor wants to offer Bangladeshi users mobile handsets with built-in financial services that the telecom giant says will fast gain popularity and reduce transaction costs.

"As a mobile phone operator, we can offer integrated mobile financial services in-built in the handsets and it will help the market grow faster," said Jon Fredrik Baksaas, president and chief executive officer of Telenor, the majority shareholder of Grameenphone.

Baksaas shared his thoughts on the current telecom market in the country as well as other digital services with a group of journalists on the sidelines of the daylong Digital Investment Summit at Radisson hotel in Dhaka yesterday.

Referring to the existing bank-led financial services in the country, he said they want to invest in an operator-led mobile financial service through online solutions here, but local regulators are not allowing it.

"We can do our part and banks can do their part to provide built-in services in handsets," he said, offering collaboration between the financial institutions and mobile operators.

Telenor has partnered with the world leading digital service provider Accenture, said Baksaas, also the global chairman of GSM mobile phone operators' association.

"Accenture has the competence to offer modern services and we have our own network and market to provide digital services jointly. By this, we can also find new investment avenues in the ICT and telecom sectors."

In response to queries on the achievements of the summit, Baksaas said Bangladesh has already developed capacity to deliver services worldwide and the event will help the country attract global attention, especially in outsourcing.

"The Bangladesh market is ready to deliver quality services and a company like us, in association with Accenture, can play a leading role in providing services globally," said Baksaas.

Apart from serving Grameenphone, Accenture will also provide its services to other companies of the Telenor Group in Asia.

Telenor, which owns a 55.8 percent stake in Grameenphone, is enthusiastic about the company's role in Bangladesh's next phase of telecommunications, he said.

Baksaas believes through this summit, the world market can see very strong growth potential here.

On the government's Vision 2021, he said lots of digital services will come by that time; customers will get more bandwidth on their devices and the prices of gadgets will come down as well.

Now, the government should provide incentives for innovation, which can lead the country to a digital services revolution, he said.

"And through this process, the whole nation can be benefitted," said Baksaas, who has been with Telenor since 1989.

Terming it as a mature market, Baksaas said Bangladesh is riding a strong wave; there is national coverage here, and more than 120 million active SIMs are in the market.

"A predictable and consistent regulatory framework is needed for sustainable growth. But here we found deviations on some things, particularly on the SIM replacement tax issue. This is a fundamental issue now as the new spectrum auction is coming," said Baksaas.

In an upcoming auction in the 1,800 band, operators with bandwidth exceeding 20 MHz will not be allowed to participate; however, Grameenphone is the only operator with that capacity. "As a long-term investor, we don't ask for incentives, rather we ask for a level playing field," he said.