• Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) struck a deal to acquire Telenor Pakistan for in late 2023
• Pakistan’s regulator has finally granted approval
• The deal is expected to be completed in early 2026, making PTCL the country’s second-largest mobile operator

Two years after the initial M&A announcement was made, Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) is on course to complete its acquisition of Telenor Pakistan, a deal that will make it the second-largest mobile player in the country by subscriber numbers. 

The initial agreement was first struck in December 2023 and had been expected to close in 2024. However, the acquisition only received approval from the Competition Commission of Pakistan in early October this year and only in the past few days has the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) granted a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for the takeover “after a comprehensive review”. 

The PTA noted it had “evaluated the transaction’s impact on market competition and consumer interests, and consulted relevant government bodies to ensure full compliance with statutory requirements,” adding that “PTCL may proceed with the acquisition, subject to completion of all legal and commercial formalities”. 

PTCL, which is majority owned (with a 62% stake) by the Pakistan state but managed by Middle East powerhouse e& (which holds a 26% stake), valued the deal in late 2023 at 108bn Pakistan rupees ($385m at current conversion rates). 

The operator now just needs to secure approvals from the State Bank of Pakistan, which will oversee the final transaction that is now expected to take place next month. The financing for the deal is coming from the International Finance Corp. (IFC), which is providing a loan and arranging debt facilities.

Once completed, PTCL’s mobile operation, Ufone, will add Telenor Pakistan’s 42.4 million mobile users to its 27.2 million customers to give it a total subscriber base of about 69.6 million customers for a market share of about 35.5%, second only to Jazz (with about 72.6 million customers, 37% market share) and ahead of Zong (52 million, 26.5% market share).

The deal will also move the needle on PTCL’s annual revenues. In 2024, PTCL, which offers fixed line as well as mobile services, reported full year revenues of 219.7bn Pakistan rupees ($784m) for the full year 2024, while Telenor Pakistan generated full year revenues in 2024 of about $436m. 

PTCL will also inherit Pakistan’s first sovereign AI operation, courtesy of Telenor Pakistan’s recent hook-up with Data Vault – see Telenor Pakistan teams up for sovereign AI.

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV