Celcom Axiata, the Telco that is currently trialing 5G in Malaysia, now has 8.37 million subscribers, according to the latest financial data from Axiata Group. The Telco lost 251k mobile subscribers, mostly prepaid subscribers, between the month of October, November and December last year. It had 8.62 million mobile subscribers in 3Q19.
Celcom is part of the Axiata Group.
In 4Q19, Celcom lost 15k postpaid subscribers. Celcom postpaid subscriber base is down to 2.96 million from 2.98 million it had as of September 2019 (3Q19). APRU for postpaid is currently higher at RM88 (+RM2) compared to RM86 in 3Q19.
There are 5.41 million prepaid subscribers using the Celcom network, down from 5.64 million it had as of September 2019 (3Q19). The Telco lost 236k prepaid subscribers in 4Q19. ARPU for prepaid is at RM36, unchanged since the previous quarter.
For the entire 2019, Celcom lost 704k mobile subscribers including 677k on prepaid and 27k on postpaid.
Celcom mobile subscribers consumed an average 14.9GB in 4Q19. About 77.1% of its customers are data/Internet users. 84% of the mobile subscriber base are smartphone users.
The Telco’s 4G LTE and LTE-A coverage remains at 93% and 81% respectively, unchanged since March 2019.
According to the Axiata Group, despite a decline in mobile service revenue, Celcom delivered 7.8% increase in EBITDA to RM2.1 billion whilst margin improved 4.7ppt to 30.6%, as a result of strong focus on more profitable products, continuous pursuit of “Operational Excellence” and cost optimisation.
PATAMI surged more than 100% to RM813 million largely due to absence of one-off asset impairments and employee restructuring charges in FY18. Celcom mobile service revenue declined 3.9% due to lower Mobile Termination Rates (“MTR”), wholesale revenue and a challenging market environment. Free Cash Flow (FCF) grew 21.9% lifted by EBITDA expansion whilst Capex scaled down by 3.6%.
The Group said that Celcom continued to maintain leadership position in network coverage against peers in FY19 as 4G and 4G LTE-A population coverage rose to 93% and 81% respectively.
Tan Sri Jamaludin Ibrahim, President and Group Chief Executive Officer of Axiata said: “The Group’s 2019 performance reflects the well-executed strategies and adjustments made in response to the hyper competitive and fast shifting industry landscape. We made a commitment it will be a promising 2019 and I am pleased to say we delivered!”
Last month, Axiata Group announced that Tan Sri Jamaludin Ibrahim will be stepping down by the end of 2020. His contract which will expire on March 2 is to be extended for another 10 months. Former UEM group chieftain Datuk Mohd Izzaddin Idris, who is currently Axiata non-executive director, has been designated to take over the helm after Jamaludin retires.
