This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on August 6, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar stepped down as chairman of Axiata Group Bhd last Friday, following his recent resignation as the managing director of sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd, which owns a 37.3% stake in the telecommunications (telco) group.

In a statement last Friday, Axiata lauded Azman for what it termed “10 years of exemplary service”, and attributed the group’s growth and expansion since its inception in 2008 to his visionary leadership.

It is also under Azman’s stewardship that Axiata’s customer base jumped to 350 million, from 40 million in the 10 years since December 2017, making it the second-largest telco group in Asean and South Asia, while its revenue more than doubled to reach RM24 billion in the same period.

The group’s market capitalisation also improved 1.8 times, from RM28.3 billion at its initial public offering in 2008 to RM49.6 billion as at end-2017, Axiata said.

Its senior independent non-executive director Tan Sri Ghazzali Sheikh Abdul Khalid said Axiata’s emergence as a regional champion and an institution with a strong governance practice was due to Azman’s vision, business acumen and professionalism.

“As chairman, he always ensured that we carried out our fiduciary duties in accordance with the highest accountability, and at the same time, creating long-term value for our stakeholders,” Ghazzali added.

The telco group could not have attained its leading industry position without Azman’s guidance, support and encouragement, said Axiata president and group chief executive officer Tan Sri Jamaludin Ibrahim.

“One thing I will always remember is Azman’s consistent advice to management to focus on creating long-term value for shareholders, rather than focusing purely on short-term profits, which would have been easier to achieve,” Jamaludin said.

“Hence, business sustainability and growth are as important as short-term financial performance. He certainly does not like shortcuts,” he said.

Jamaludin also commended Azman for having been instrumental in inspiring Axiata to work on its new vision of becoming the New Generation Digital Champion in the next five years.

“On behalf of the board, management and employees of Axiata across the region, and myself, I personally express our heartfelt appreciation and gratitude to Azman for his 10 years of chairmanship and leadership of the group,” Jamaludin added.

Axiata, which is listed on Bursa Malaysia, is a telco group with businesses in Asia, and prides itself as having a “Triple Core Strategy” focus on digital telco, digital businesses and infrastructure.