Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)- Grameenphone's net profit rose by 14.65 percent to around BDT 44.60 billion in April-June, compared to the same period last year.
The profit rose due to reduced SIM tax and network modernization that brought down the operator's network maintenance costs.
Net profit of the company was reported at BDT 9.70 billion for the first half (January-June) of 2012, a 43 percent rise from the same period last year, the mobile operator said in a statement.
The company earned BDT 46.40 billion in revenues in the first half this year, a 7 percent increase from the same period last year.
The growth in revenue was mainly from voice, non-voice and roaming services driven by subscription growth, according to the statement.
Grameenphone added 2.80 million new customers during the first six months. Its subscription base now stands at 39.3 million with around 42 percent market share.
The company invested BDT 7.50 billion during the first half of 2012 on its network development and paid BDT 27.90 billion to the state coffer. Its cumulative investment since inception stands at BDT 178 billion and the accumulated contribution to the national exchequer is BDT 273 billion.
The company declared interim cash dividend at 90 percent of its paid-up capital (BDT nine per share of BDT 10 each) for 2012 out of the provisional net profit for the half year that ended on June 30 and retained earnings up to December 31, 2011.
The shareholders as of the record date of July 31, 2012 will be entitled to this dividend, to be distributed within the timeframe stipulated by the regulators, it added.
BBN/SSR/AD-22July12-11:40 pm (BST)
