Jørgen C. Arentz Rostrup to lead Telenor’s unified Asia business

19 March 2020: Tone H. Bachke to become new Telenor Group CFO as Rostrup takes on new position in Asia

“Asia continues to be a growth engine for Telenor Group. The development of the region has led to increasingly similar maturity levels across the markets, which has diminished many of the differences between our two clusters. By uniting these markets into a single, Asia unit and building a stronger Asia presence, we are well-equipped to fully realise the potential across the region and seize opportunities for growth,” says Sigve Brekke, President & CEO, Telenor Group.

He adds, “Jørgen has been invaluable to the work we have done over the past years to setting us on a solid course of growth and modernisation. Through Telenor’s operational excellence measures, a sharper focus on what creates value, and a dedication to uncovering efficiencies over time, the company is one of the best-positioned global telcos. With him at the helm in Asia, we will enable an even tighter focus on growth, modernisation, and new opportunities in the region.”

Rostrup to be based in regional hub in Singapore

“I see great potential in bringing the Asian clusters together as one strong team with a mandate to explore the potential across our markets, and to actively engage with the business environments in the region. I am eager to join forces with the teams in Asia to continue this journey of creating value and driving growth,” says Jørgen C. Arentz Rostrup.

Rostrup will be based in a regional Hub in Singapore and will work actively with the CEOs of the five Telenor companies in Asia. The Head of Asia will report directly to the President & CEO of Telenor Group and continue as part of the Group Executive Management.

Albern Murty and Irfan Khan to continue as CEOs in Malaysia and Pakistan, respectively

From 1 May 2020, Digi CEO Albern Murty and Telenor Pakistan CEO Irfan Khan will step out of their current roles as heads of the clusters “Developed Asia” and “Emerging Asia” on the Group Executive Management, and will remain CEOs of their respective companies.

“Albern and Irfan have been vital to the development of their clusters, and under their management we now have strong Asian leadership represented in our Asian markets. Consequently, we have been able to extract growth, modernise our way of work and advance our infrastructure, all while contributing to the digital advancement of Asia. I am pleased Albern and Irfan will continue to lead as CEOs in team Asia going forward,” says Sigve Brekke.

Telenor in Asia – Key Facts

• Telenor currently has 176 million mobile subscribers in region Asia
• Asia accounts for 53 percent of Telenor Group’s overall revenues
• Telenor has been present in Asia since 1997
• Grameenphone in Bangladesh holds Telenor Group’s largest customer base with 76.5 million customers