CEO Jabbor Kayumov Dragged into Ncell Dispute

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ncell, Jabbor Kayumov, has come into the limelight in Nepal following the controversial sale of Reynolds Holding Limited, which owns approximately 80 percent equity stake in Ncell Axiata Limited. Malaysian company Axiata had announced on December 1 that it had entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Spectrlite UK Limited for the transaction.

Spectrlite UK, registered in the United Kingdom in September of the current year, is owned by Satish Lal Acharya, a person of Nepali origin based in Singapore. The remaining 20 percent stake in Ncell is held by Sunivera Capital Venture, owned by Acharya’s wife, Bhavana Singh Shrestha.

The controversy arises from suspicions that the purchase and sale were orchestrated in collusion with Nepalese businessmen to evade the legal system. Questions have been raised about the valuation of Ncell, which was acquired by Axiata in 2016 for $1.365 billion but was purportedly valued at just $50 million in 2023. Acharya, the buyer, disputes this, claiming the purchase is worth about 53 billion.

The Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA), the regulatory agency, was not informed about the deal, despite the Telecommunications Regulation of 1997 requiring prior approval for the sale or purchase of more than five percent of the paid-up capital.

Under the Telecommunications Act, Ncell’s shares would eventually be owned by the government approximately six years after foreign investments. The change in share ownership strategy is suspected to prevent the company from falling under government ownership.

Adding another layer to the controversy, Jabbor Kayumov, who assumed the role of Ncell’s CEO in April of the current year, is implicated in the share purchase case. Allegations suggest that Jabbor has a longstanding relationship with businessman Acharya and took on the role of CEO to influence the process of buying and selling 80 percent of Ncell shares.

Jabbor’s previous association with Smart Telecom, also invested by Satish Lal Acharya, further deepens the controversy. Notably, he mentioned in his social media profile that he worked as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) in Ncell for approximately 1 year and 8 months in 2011 and 2012.

In a recent meeting of the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives, MP Dr. Amresh Kumar Singh asserted that CEO Jabbor Kayumov was appointed by Satishlal Acharya to manipulate the purchase and sale of Ncell shares. Kayumov, who previously served as COO at Ncell in 2011-2012, was the CEO of Digicel Group before his role at Ncell.

With Satishlal Acharya being a Nepali-origin citizen, there are speculations that Ncell may not come under government ownership even after the license expires in about six years. The government’s grant of citizenship to non-resident Nepali citizens for business rights adds weight to this possibility, further complicating the unfolding controversy.