Interview: Asia "more dynamic" in many things than Europe: Telenor CEO
Xinhua, March 4, 2015 Adjust font size:
The chief executive of Norwegian telecom firm Telenor Jon Fredrik Baksaas on Tuesday said he expected to see a lot of future growth in Asia's "innovative" markets.
"Asia is more dynamic and energetic in many things than Europe," Baksaas, also the chairman of the GSMA -- an association of mobile operators -- said at the ongoing 2015 Mobile World Congress.
He said Telenor was looking to introduce many more innovative services in Asian markets, where the Norwegian group has about 160 million subscribers.
Baksaas said mobile financial services were reaching people without bank accounts in Asia. In Bangladesh, for example, the country's largest cell phone operator Grameenphone has taken mobile services to rural areas over the last 17 years, he said.
Baksaas said a number of Asian countries including India, Pakistan and Bangladesh were looking at establishing digital identities through secure methods stored on a SIM card.
"This kind of initiative will help develop services not only in Asia but across the world," he said. Endit