Robi ended the third quarter of the year with a profit after tax (PAT) of Tk86.5 crore.

The company's PAT grew 85.4 per cent compared to the last quarter. Compared to the same quarter last year, Robi's PAT grew 122.3 per cent in Q3 of 2021.

In comparison to the first nine months of last year, Robi's PAT for the first nine months of this year grew 44.3 per cent.

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Supported by steadily rising revenue, and efficient cost management, the company's PAT for the first nine months of the year reached Tk167.4 crore. Robi's financial results for Q3 were released Sunday at a virtual press briefing event.

Compared to Q2 '21, Robi's 4G subscriber base grew 12.7 per cent in Q3 '21; compared to the same quarter last year, its 4G subscriber base grew 51.1 per cent.

Out of a total subscriber base of 5 crore 30 lakhs, 2 crore 24 lakhs are 4G subscribers. Besides, 74 per cent of the company's subscribers are now data users. 

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Although the subscriber base grew 5.8 per cent compared to the same quarter last year, Robi's subscriber base grew 2.3 per cent in Q3 '21. Robi’s subscriber market share stood at 29.5 per cent at the end of Q3 '21.

Robi's revenue reached Tk2,085 crore in Q3 '21 following a rise of 2.7 per cent compared to the last quarter.

Compared to the same quarter last year, Robi's revenue rose 7.8 per cent. In the first nine months (January to September) of this year, Robi's revenue reached Tk6,097 crore.

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Robi's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) in Q3 '21 stood at Tk861.2 crore, following a rise of 0.8 per cent compared to the last quarter, compared to the same quarter last year, EBITDA grew 9.3 per cent. EBITDA margin at the end of Q3 '21 stood at 41.3 per cent.

The company's earnings per share (EPS) in Q3 '21 was Tk0.17; in Q2 '21 the EPS was Tk0.09, and in Q3 '20 it was Tk0.08. However, for the first nine months of this year (January to September), the EPS was Tk0.32.

Including a capex investment of Tk650.7 crore in Q3 '21, the total capex investment in the first nine months of the year reached Tk1,386 crore. Robi paid Tk1,119 crore to the government exchequer in Q3 '21, which was 53.7 per cent of its revenue for the quarter.

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The total amount paid to the government exchequer during the first nine months of this year reached Tk3,373 crore, which is 55.3 per cent of the company's total revenue for this period. The company had 14,466 sites at the end of Q3 '21.

Robi's Acting CEO and CFO M Riyaaz Rashid said: "We are very happy to see our profit rising steadily every quarter this year. However, it is very disappointing to note that our PAT in the first nine months could have been Tk289.3 crore, instead of Tk167.4 crore, had we not been subjected to a further 2 per cent minimum turnover tax. Our shareholders are certainly being deprived of the value they deserve for their investment in the company due to this reason."

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