Malaysian 5G wholesale operator Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) said on Thursday that four of five telco investors have met the deadline to complete their Share Subscription Agreements (SSAs), paving the way for the launch of a second 5G operator.
Maxis, Telekom Malaysia (TM), U Mobile, YTL and CelcomDigi’s Infranation signed SSAs in December 2023 to collectively take a 70% stake in DNB, with each taking a 14% stake. Since then, however, the telcos have been haggling over the “conditions precedent” that needed to be settled before the SSAs can take effect.
Earlier this month, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said all SSAs must be signed off by June 21, which is also a condition for participating in the government’s planned second 5G network.
DNB said on Thursday that all conditions precedent under the SSA were successfully met on June 20 by Maxis, U Mobile, YTL and CelcomDigi. Maxis issued a statement earlier this month saying it was ready to sign its SSA. CelcomDigi and U Mobile issued similar statements yesterday.
TM still needs to acquire approval from shareholders in accordance with its governance requirements. DNB said TM has been given a long-stop date of August 21, 2024 to complete that process.
The Minister of Finance (MOF) owns the remaining 30% stake in DNB, as well as a Special Share for a designated period.
The finalisation of the SSAs enables the Malaysian government to officially proceed with the launch of a second 5G network, which has been on the table since May 2023. In their statements confirming that their DNB SSAs have been finalised, Maxis, U Mobile and CelcomDigi each said they were committed to play a role in the second network as well.
On June 2, representatives from the Ministry of Communications, the Ministry of Digital, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry met to discuss their respective roles and functions in implementing a dual 5G network model.
Earlier this week, according to the official Bernama news agency, Minister Fahmi confirmed that the government remains committed to implementing its dual 5G network policy, following a meeting with China’s Minister of Industry and Information Technology, Jin Zhuanglong.
Fahmi also said he had discussed implementing the second 5G network with Jin, without giving details.
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