Singtel consolidates consumer, enterprise businesses, forms infrastructure arm

Singtel has announced a reorganisation of its structure designed to drive growth, synergies and productivity at the country level. Central to this is the consolidation of the consumer and enterprise businesses in Singapore into a singular operating company.

In addition, Singtel will form a standalone infrastructure unit called Digital InfraCo to include the Group’s regional data centre business, subsea cable and satellite carrier businesses as well as Paragon, Singtel’s all-in-one platform for 5G MEC and cloud orchestration.

The moves are part of Singtel’s strategic reset and ongoing efforts to restructure and reposition the company for growth. In 2021, Singtel spun off its ICT arm NCS to accelerate its expansion into Asia Pacific as an autonomous business unit. NCS has since grown in size and scope with a 12,000-strong workforce and a regional footprint that extends to Australia. In July 2022, Singtel further decentralised its organisational structure by transferring the management of Optus Enterprise to Australia, effectively giving Optus more operational autonomy and direct accountability.

“This consolidation of our consumer and enterprise units in Singapore is designed to empower our core business to optimise synergies and capabilities to drive growth. With a more unified approach, we would be more agile, competitive and compelling when bringing solutions to market. At the same time, this will allow us to deliver better outcomes for our customers, whether they are consumers, small businesses or enterprise customers,” said Singtel Group CEO Yuen Kuan Moon.

Commenting on the infrastructure arm, Yuen said, “Singtel has a large and unique portfolio of digital infrastructure assets across Asia, which is a key differentiator for the Group. Since Covid, accelerated digitalisation has turned these assets, the passive backbone of our business, into an area of growth. Having invested heavily in these assets through the years, establishing them as a standalone business will allow us to capture new growth as their importance and appeal continue to increase.”

Yuen added, “These actions are aligned with the strategic reset we announced two years ago and will reinvigorate our core business in Singapore, thereby enhancing returns for our shareholders. With the rising importance of digital infrastructure globally, the new Digital InfraCo is well-positioned to be a credible growth engine that will allow Singtel to unlock latent value in the business.”

New management structure and appointments

These changes will see new appointments and modifications to the Group’s management structure and committee.

Veteran Hewlett Packard executive Ng Tian Chong will join Singtel to head up the newly combined operating company with effect from 1 June 2023. He was most recently Senior Vice President and Managing Director of HP’s Greater Asia business with responsibility for all its go-to-market strategies and overall financial performance.

Ng said, “I’m thrilled to be joining Singtel, a storied Singapore brand that is very much part of the Singapore growth story. I hope to play a key role in meeting the evolving needs of our consumers and business customers and driving Singtel’s next phase of digital growth.”

Anna Yip, CEO of Singtel’s Singapore consumer business, and Lim Seng Kong, Managing Director of the Singapore enterprise business, will both report into Ng with effect from 1 June 2023. Yip will be redesignated Deputy CEO of the combined entity. In addition, she will assume the new role of CEO, Business Development and report to Singtel’s Group CEO in this capacity. This will see her drive Singtel’s digital finance portfolio which includes GXS Bank and Dash, accelerate the regional growth of the digital GOMO brand and develop new business-to-business-to-any end-user (B2B2X) ventures that are value accretive to the Group’s core.

Yip said, “I’m delighted to be part of the team driving the consolidation of Singapore’s consumer and enterprise businesses and look forward to working closely with Tian Chong to draw on the synergies of collaboration to take the business forward. I also look forward to growing our digital finance and B2B2X businesses, by building on our local operational experience to reach new markets and customers with like-minded strategic partners.”

Bill Chang will relinquish his enterprise business portfolio to helm the new Digital InfraCo with effect from 1 June 2023.

Chang said, “The growth of the digital economy has pushed up the value of infrastructure assets around the world and Singtel’s assets are no exception. I’m excited to be driving the monetisation and value crystallisation of our quality portfolio of assets in an area where we not only have a right to play, but the competitive advantage to win.”

The Singtel Group will appoint Jorge Fernandes as its Group Chief Technology Officer with effect from 1 June 2023. A seasoned telecoms executive, Fernandes spent the bulk of his career as CTO in Vodafone, where he led technology strategy and delivery execution across Vodafone UK, Turkey and Portugal. He was most recently CTIO with Rogers Communications in Canada. He replaces Mark Chong who was seconded to AIS, Singtel’s Thai regional associate, as its Deputy CEO in December 2022.

Fernandes said, “I’m honoured and thrilled to be joining Asia’s leading communications technology group and top 10 global telecom brand with such a proud tradition and forward-looking commitment towards innovation, technological firsts and investment. I look forward to bringing my breadth of global experience and team leadership to the organisation and supporting Singtel’s ambitions to harness technology to empower consumers, companies and communities.”

Ng and Fernandes will join Singtel’s management committee with effect from 1 June 2023.

Yuen said, “We’re very pleased to bring on board leaders of Tian Chong’s and Jorge’s calibre. Their expertise and experience across a diversity of developed and emerging markets will no doubt add to our bench strength as we strive to advance our core business and pursue new business. At the same time, I have every confidence that Bill and Anna will build on our strong infrastructure legacy and mobile core to create opportunities for new growth.”