In June 2013, Ooredoo was chosen as one of the two successful applicants among 90 bidders to be awarded a license to operate in Myanmar, considered one of the Asia’s last remaining greenfield telecom markets.

[1] Formal licenses were granted in January 2014, and Ooredoo pledged an investment of $15 billion to develop Myanmar’s telecoms sector, with plans to cover 75% of the population in five years.

[4] Nine Communications is the subsidiary of zLink Family Office and Nyan Win, which have close ties to the Burmese military officials like Soe Maung.

[5] The deal size has courted significant scrutiny for its involvement by business proxies commonly used by the Burmese military, including entities controlled by Zaw Win Shein (of Ayeyar Hinthar) and Jonathan Kyaw Thaung (of KT Group).

[6] The announcement of Ooredoo's sale prompted sharp criticism from rights groups, including Access Now, for putting the personal data of 9 million customers at the hands of the Burmese military.