Online has become the real option - Fong
THE use of the internet continues to grow about 30 per cent a year as businesses have been forced to digitalise very quickly.
This was according to Amalgamated Telecom Holdings Ltd chief executive officer Ivan Fong who said most companies now had their inventory online compared with before the pandemic.
“So what we do and I think all the other telecom operators doing as well is making sure that we can support the businesses to all go online as well,” he said.
“I think that’s going to be the future even if we come to some reasonable normality out of COVID that online ways of doing things now become a real option for everyone to be able to use as well.
He added more and more people were doing meetings online communicating with family and friends.
“So that’s all there, and that’s going to continue to pick up and grow as well.
“I don’t see that, even after COVID or out of COVID, that this will decrease.
“It’s areas for us, to continue to invest in as well.”
Mr Fong said while unfortunately, a lot of people had lost their jobs, incomes had been impacted but the remittances from family and friends overseas had picked up.
“A lot of that is coming through the mobile payments, both of our own companies.
“The other operators are doing it as well.
“So I think it’s a very good opportunity and there’s still a lot of people unbanked less so in Fiji, but in markets like Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, for example, huge unbanked population, and mobile payments and banking is the only way to reach a lot of these customers.”
ATH’s presence is in 10 Pacific Islands markets at this stage.
Mr Fong said if the opportunities did arise, they would have a look into it.
“There’s no guarantee that we will go into any market or step into it, but if the opportunity makes sense, we can find good shareholders and partners to work with us to support the business.
“Then obviously these things are worthwhile looking into. I mean, you can look at the map and tell where we are not.
“So if opportunities do come up in these places, and we are either invited to look at or we have an interest, we will certainly explore the opportunity at the very least.”