British Channel Islands-based Webtel.mobi (Holdings) Limited is
expected to establish
a regional hub in Malaysia within
six months from the completion of
its placing and listing on the London Stock Exchange in the first-quarter of 2012.
Webtel.mobi
local representative and regional strategic
advisor for South-East Asia Albert Cheok said the telecommunications company
is looking at some US$100 million
(RM319 million) in capital expenditure over a number of years to appoint
and train local affiliates subsequent to the
listing.
Cheok,
who is coordinating Webtel.mobi’s virtual specialised mobile provider’s (VSMP) expansion in South-East Asia, was not at liberty to divulge the amount of investment the telco will make in Malaysia, but said he has already received expressions of
interest from over 300 companies wishing to become Webtel.mobi VSMPs.
"Webtel.mobi product offers great advantages to all users, especially in saturated markets," he told The Malaysian Reserve, adding that the Malaysian
mobile telephony consumers can utilise the company’s service without unsubscribing from their current providers. Cheok was
the former supervisor of banks at the
Reserve Bank of Australia and Hong
Kong’s deputy commissioner of
banking. He currently chairs the
board of several companies and banks
throughout South-East Asia, advising
them on strategies in the
region.
Guernsey-based Webtel.mobi may have just found the solution for convergence of the global mobile and landline telephony markets, as well as an opportunity for taking a meaningful share in the vast US$2 trillion per annum revenue in the
sector, according to the research
reports by Frost & Sullivan and London-based telco consultancy firm
The Mobile World made available to The Malaysian
Reserve.
Webtel.mobi chief executive officer Stuart Sterzel said it was a ‘haven to invest’ in telephony stocks during times of financial crisis because since 2008, the world has witnessed exponential growth in mobile telephony usage and revenue.
"Stock prices of telcos have overtaken the trending rise in gold commodity prices," he said, adding that investing in telcos
will help investors hedge against
future financial storms.
The
Frost & Sullivan report stated Webtel.mobi’s coverage is available to and from all countries, and undercuts the standard costs of
mobile and landline phones, and
mobile text messages, by an average 80%
(depending on the country).
"It is free to join and easy to use. There are no monthly fees to pay, only payment for actual calls made," Cheok said.
