SGX-listed Airtel to lead India’s 5G industry

This comes as it acquired 19,800MHz spectrum. 

Bharti Airtel is poised to lead the 5G industry in India after it acquired 19,800 megahertz (MHz) spectrum as it secured a pan India footprint of 3.5GHz and 2GHz bands. 

This was acquired through the auction of INR430b spectrum secured for 20 years.

“This spectrum acquisition at the latest auction has been a part of a deliberate strategy to buy the best spectrum assets at a substantially lower relative cost compared to our competition. This will allow us to raise the bar on innovation and address the emerging needs of every discerning customer who demands the best experience in India,” Gopal Vittal, M.D. and CEO, Bharti Airtel.

“This will allow us to change a lot of established paradigms for both our B2C and B2B customers. 5G technology is the revolution that can alter India’s manufacturing, services and several other sectors.”

Read more: Singtel monetises 1.6% of stake in Airtel Africa

This expanded Airtel’s mobile broadband footprint across India. Over the years, Airtel has accumulated the largest pool of low and mid band spectrum that allows it to provide the “best” 5G coverage.

It also has massive capacities in the 3.5GHz and 26GHz bands, paving the way for the company to crease 100x capacities at a lower cost.