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With the sale of its stake in True, Telenor is left with just two mobile businesses in Asia
This week, Norwegian telco giant Telenor has announced the sale of its 30.3% stake in Thailand’s True Corporation for NOK 39 billion ($3.9 billion).
The deal will see Telenor immediately offload a 24.95% stake to Arise Digital Technology, a holding company owned by Thai billionaire Khun Suphachai Chearavanont.
The remaining 5.35% stake is to be sold in two years’ time via a mutual put/call option, allowing Telenor to sell the shares at the original deal price or the prevailing market price, whichever is greater.
Telenor gained its stake in True via the merger of their local mobile operator DTAC (Total Access Communications) was merged with True Corporation in 2023.
Since then, Telenor has faced significant headwinds in key Asian markets, often leading to rapid divestments at considerable loss.
In 2022, the company wrote off its business in Myanmar following coup. One year later, rapid currency devaluation in Pakistan ravaged Telenor’s, leading to its sale.
Now, with the sale of their stake in True, Telenor has just two major telco businesses in Asia: Grameenphone, the largest company in Bangladesh, in which Telenor holds a majority stake (55.8%); and CelcomDigi in Malaysia, in which it holds a 33.1% stake.
Outside of Asia, Telenor operates major operators in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland.
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