8 big investment funds exploring investment in telecom sector: Ashwini Vaishnaw

New Delhi, March 1: Union Communications and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Friday said that at least eight large investment firms are looking to explore opportunities in the telecom sector amid rapid digital transformation and new opportunities.

More and more investors are looking at the country as an emerging market for investments.

"At least eight large investment firms have met me so far and they want to explore investments in the telecom sector in India. Because the market size is very large, technology acceptance is very high. The India stack is so widespread," the minister said.

“Telecom is the gateway to digital India. Combine all these factors, and investor interest in India is huge," he added.

According to the minister, there will be new business models and the country will see new technical advancements in the near future.

India's telecom sector, that lost a precious decade due to the 2G scam and policy paralysis, swung back to life after 2014 as the government took several steps to correct the situation in the telecom market and effectively handled the failures that resulted from the lack of clarity in policy in the sector, said the 'White Paper on Economy' last month.

Underlining how the Narendra Modi government turned the economy around and rebuilt the country’s image, the 'White Paper' said the government brought transparent methods of spectrum auction, trading and sharing that further enabled the optimal utilisation of spectrum.

The 5G auction in 2022 "increased the overall spectrum availability for the telecom service providers (TSPs) by allocating the highest-ever quantum of spectrum, i.e., 52 GHz, at the highest-ever auction value.

"Also, healthy cash flow for TSPs enabled them to make capital investments in 5G technology, leading to the rollout of 5G network in the country, which is acknowledged as the fastest 5G rollout in the world," it said.