Grameenphone started its journey on March 26, 1997 with "017" number series when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made the first call to Laily Begum, living in the rural outskirts of Dhaka city
The new number series of Grameenphone has been unveiled at a local hotel by Brig Gen Md Mustafa Kamal, director general (E&O) of BTRC. The first call of "013" was made by Grameenphone's Deputy CEO and CMO Yasir Azman to Telecommunication and ICT Minister Mustafa Jabbar.
The minister congratulated Grameenphone for the courage the company has shown in spreading the network, and expressed confidence in the company's commitment to maintain quality for its large number of customers.
The director general congratulated Grameenphone for being able to launch the "013" number series within a short time, and hoped the company will maintain the same quality of service it is known for.
The ceremony was attended by senior officials of Grameenphone, along with representatives from the media.
Grameenphone started its journey on March 26, 1997 with "017" number series when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made the first call to Laily Begum, living in the rural outskirts of Dhaka city. Since then the company has been leading the telecom industry of the country and is currently serving 71 million customers, making it one of the top 20 mobile operators in the world in subscriber numbers.
The lack of further "017" new numbers compelled the company to rely on recycled numbers to serve customers who want to enjoy the superior network and service of Grameenphone. Upon the request of the company, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission initially allocated 20 million numbers from "013" series.
With "013" connections, customers will be able to enjoy the same portfolio of products and services, and the same network services customers of "017" currently enjoy. New SIM cards with "013" numbers will be available at all SIM selling outlets, just like the “017” numbers and at the same price.