BTRC for no job cuts in merger of Robi, Airtel

The telecom regulator has decided to process the merger proposal of Robi and Airtel and also set some conditions like no job cuts to protect the interest of the customers and the industry, said officials.
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission at a regular meeting on Wednesday decided to send the Robi-Airtel merger proposal to the government for approval.
‘After analysing the telecom and other relevant laws, we have decided to send the proposal to the ministry for approval,’ commission secretary Sarwar Alam told New Age.
After the announcement of merger talks earlier in September, Robi and Airtel sent a letter to BTRC seeking cooperation to get government approval to merge their operations which will turn the combined entity into the second largest mobile operator after Grameenphone in Bangladesh.
Meeting sources said that the commission decided to impose some conditions like there will be no job cuts of the employees, dealers and the agents following the merger.
They said that customers of both companies cannot in no way be deprived because of the merger.
The lead company after the merger will take responsibility of any outstanding dues, both government and non-government, of the other company, they said.
‘The commission did not see any problem in spectrum merger though it will bar the lead company from selling the spectrum of the other company in future,’ a senior BTRC official said.
Robi will have a 75 per cent stake in the merged entity and Airtel 25 per cent, according to a joint letter submitted to BTRC by the two companies.
In Robi’s 75 per cent stake, Axiata Group, Robi’s Malaysia-based parent company, will own 70 per cent and Japan’s NTT DOCOMO 5 per cent.
At present, Axiata’s share in Robi is 91.59 per cent and DOCOMO’s 8.41 per cent.
As of July, Robi’s customer base stood at 2.79 crore and Airtel’s approximately 91 lakh, according to BTRC statistics.
After the merger, the joint entity will surpass Banglalink, the second largest operator with 3.2 crore subscribers.

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