Excel Telecom to set up second Samsung smartphone factory in Bangladesh

Globally reputed Korean company Samsung is going to set up its second smartphone factory in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has already given permission to Excel Telecom to set up the second factory, said sources from the BTRC.

Sources said Excel Telecom has been a distributor of various Samsung brand products in Bangladesh for a long time. Earlier this year, Excel Telecom Limited applied to the BTRC for approval to manufacture Samsung brand smartphones in Bangladesh.

In August last, the South Korean ambassador to Dhaka wrote to the BTRC requesting permission for Excel Telecom to set up the Samsung smartphone manufacturing factory. In the letter, Excel Telecom was mentioned as a long-standing business partner of Samsung in Bangladesh, said the BTRC sources.

The letter also mentioned that according to its international business policy, Samsung has multiple business partners in almost all countries.

Sources said that Excel Telecom's application for approval was presented at a recent BTRC meeting. The department concerned informed the meeting that according to BTRC's policy, there is no obstacle in setting up multiple factories to produce handsets of the same international brand. Later, in the meeting, Excel Telecom was given initial approval to set up the factory. Now, after completing some official procedures, Excel Telecom will be able to set up the factory.

Mentionable, following an initiative undertaken in 2016, Fair Electronics started manufacturing Samsung brand smartphones for the first time in Bangladesh in 2018. The factory set up in Narsingdi was the first smartphone factory of an international brand in the country.

According to relevant sources, Fair Electronics objected to the idea of setting up a second factory after Excel Telecom applied for approval. Their objection letter said that so far, Fair Electronics has not been able to raise the money invested to set up their factory. Later, after the Samsung authorities promised to operate the two factories without discrimination, Fair Electronics provided no objection to Excel Telecom to set up a second factory.

Fair Electronics is currently also manufacturing Chinese Hisense brand TVs, refrigerators and ACs.