GP posts 10% growth in revenue
Jul 23, 2009
Grameenphone Ltd. posted a 10 percent growth in revenue reaching to BDT 1,628 crore in the second quarter of 2009 compared to BDT 1,477 crore in the same quarter of last year.
The revenue increase is attributable to a higher number of subscribers, higher average price (APPM) and increased interconnectivity revenues, due to the introduction of International Gateway (IGW) from the fourth quarter of 2008, which were partly offset by reduced fees on local interconnect calls.
Grameenphone CEO Oddvar Hesjedal, pleased with the financial results posted for the second quarter, said that “the increasing revenue growth trend, I think accurately demonstrates that the management is willing to make the right changes at the right time to bolster the company during the lull in the economy.”
Notably the EBITDA margin improved significantly compared to last year mainly due to higher revenues combined with lower subscription acquisition costs. The Average Revenue per User (ARPU), however, deceased by 1 percent due to lower usage and the reduced interconnect fees. “In light of the current market conditions EBITDA growth is definitely a positive indicator of the business prospects of Grameenphone,” added the CEO.
The company's cumulative investment now stands at BDT 14,400 crore including BDT 480 crore in 2009. Grameenphone has adjusted its investment in network in line with the current growth in subscriptions and traffic volumes. Grameenphone added 106,000 subscribers during the second quarter but still saw a slight decline in subscription market share to 45 percent.
Following the reduction in local interconnect rates in the previous quarter, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) lowered the international call termination rate to minimum USD 0.03 from USD 0.04, with effect from 19 May, 2009.
Earlier on 2 July, 2009, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gave formal approval for Grameenphone's Initial Public Offering (IPO). The approval was subject to satisfactory and successful completion of certain conditions, i.e. changing the denomination of shares from BDT 1 to BDT 10, and incorporating the audited financial statements for 2008 in the IPO Prospectus.
When completed The Grameenphone IPO will be by far the largest IPO ever completed in Bangladesh.