United Arab Emirates (UAE) telecoms group Emirates Telecommunication Group Company (Etisalat) has recorded a 3.9% rise in first-half net profit after federal royalties to AED4.7 billion (USD1.28 billion).
The Emirati-based telecommunications services provider said that its consolidated revenues climbed 3.2% year on year to AED26.4 billion.
Meanwhile, the aggregate subscriber base of Etisalat reached 156 million across its entire group footprint in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, representing a year-over-year increase of 7%.
Hatem Dowidar, CEO of Etisalat Group, said: With our success in deploying 5G as well as taking the global lead in fibre penetration, we ensured that our networks are future-ready for the next generation of mobile networks and technologies."
The company said that it has already partnered with Ericsson to commercially deploy 5G high-band in the UAE offering subscribers faster speeds and lower latency. It also highlighted plans to accelerate OpenRAN realisation as part of its cloud-native NaaS transformation.
Incidentally, Etisalat Digital launched the UAE Trade Connect (UTC), a new blockchain platform to help financial institutions combat fraud and duplication, in partnership with seven UAE banks and Avanza Innovations.