KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 6 — Axiata Group Bhd’s shares on Bursa Malaysia went up in the afternoon session today after the company announced that its proposed merger with Telenor ASA has been called off for now by mutual agreement.

As at 4pm, the counter, which has a weighting of 4.84 points on the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI, rose 11 sen to RM4.88 with 1.83 million shares changing hands.

In a statement today, Axiata said in the last four months, both parties had been performing their due diligence and finalising transaction agreements, which included the proposed merger of their telecom and infrastructure assets in Asia, to be completed within the third quarter of 2019.

However, it said, due to "some complexities” involved in the proposed transaction, the parties had mutually agreed to end the discussions.

Telenor ASA is the parent company of Digi.Com Bhd’s largest shareholder, Telenor Asia Pte Ltd.

Meanwhile, DiGi’s shares on Bursa Malaysia were traded slightly lower as at 4pm, declining one sen to RM4.89, with 1.83 million shares transacted. 

Both parties still acknowledged the strong strategic rationale of the transaction and did not rule out a future transaction.

Axiata said the termination of the proposed transaction would not affect the group’s ability to achieve its Digital Champion aspirations by 2022. — Bernama