Pakistan’s telecom regulator has issued a No Objection Certificate for the consolidation and transfer of licences and the amalgamation of Telenor Pakistan into Pak Telecom Mobile Limited, clearing the final major regulatory barrier to a merger that will reduce Pakistan’s mobile operator count from four to three.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority NOC was disclosed by Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited in a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Friday. Both PTML, which operates as Ufone and the digital brand Onic, and Telenor Pakistan are wholly owned subsidiaries of PTCL following the parent company’s acquisition of Telenor Pakistan’s full share capital in late 2025.
The PTA had approved the proposed amalgamation on 24 March, subject to unconditional acceptance of the regulator’s conditions within 15 days. PTCL formally applied for merger approval in January. The amalgamation will proceed through a scheme of arrangement under applicable Pakistani law.
The merged entity — known as MergeCo during the regulatory process — will serve more than 70 million subscribers, positioning it as Pakistan’s second-largest mobile operator behind Jazz. The consolidated network will draw on spectrum acquired by PTML across the 2600 MHz and 3500 MHz bands at Pakistan’s 5G auction on 10 March, where the combined PTCL group paid USD 156.75 million for 180 MHz. That spectrum will support 5G deployment across both brands once the merger is complete.
The PTCL-Telenor consolidation, one of the largest telecom deals in Pakistan’s history, was initially valued at Rs108 billion on a cash-free, debt-free basis and had been in process since a share purchase agreement was signed in late 2023.
