Sandip Das
Encyclopedia
Sandip Das is the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Maxis Communications
Berhad, the largest telecommunications company in Malaysia with overseas operations in India and Indonesia.
A well-known figure in the telecoms space Sandip Das joined Maxis in January 2007 after an impressive track record with Hutchison Essar Limited (now known as Vodafone Essar
Limited), one of India’s largest mobile operators in India, where he started its operations from scratch in 1994 and left the company as its Deputy Managing Director.
He holds a First Class Mechanical Engineering degree from the Regional Engineering College (now known as National Institute of Technology), Rourkela in India and a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from the Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi.
Subsequently, after returning to India, Sandip joined Hutchison Essar, then known as Hutchison Max Telecom where he started the company’s operations in 1994 and was its first employee. He spent 13 years in the company, including his time as CEO of Hutchison Max Telecom’s paging division,subsequently made COO of Hutchison Max Telecom in June 1998 where HMTL was an established market leader in Mobile Services and later as the Deputy Managing Director and Director on the Board of Hutchison Essar Limited. During his time with Hutchison, Sandip was a well-known and respected figure in India for his impressive track record in building the company. In an interview in May 2009, Sandip said, “I started with Hutchison in 1994. When I left, it had 25 million subscribers. Two months later, the company was sold for US$22 billion to Vodafone. I feel very proud of this achievement as I started the company’s operations from scratch”.
In 2007, following the likes of Vodafone’s Arun Sarin
and Orange’s Sanjiv Ahuja
, India boasted another helmsman in the International Telecoms Space when Sandip Das was appointed the Chief Executive Officer of Maxis Communications Berhad, the largest telecommunications operator in Malaysia.
Besides being the Executive Director and CEO of Maxis Communications Berhad, Sandip also serves as Director on the Board of Aircel
in India. In addition, Sandip also serves the Boards of Sri Lanka Telecom
PLC and Mobitel (Sri Lanka)
and is also a board member of Bridge Mobile Pte Ltd (Bridge Alliance
), a strategic alliance of regional telecommunications provider. He also served for 2 years on the Board of the Global GSM Development Fund and was the Chairman of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) Service Industry Panel.
In November 2009, Sandip led the company’s re-listing on the Malaysian Stock Exchange (Bursa Malaysia
) in what was Southeast Asia’s biggest IPO worth over US$3 billion. Recently, Sandip also led Maxis controlled subsidiary, Aircel
in India in the successful third generation (3G
) and broadband wireless access
(BWA) spectrum auctions where Aircel bagged 3G spectrum in 13 of the 22 telecom circles in India and BWA spectrum in 8 circles.
Maxis Communications
Maxis Communications Berhad is a Malaysian cellular operator company headquartered at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was started in the year 1993. It uses the dialing pref ix identifier of "012" , "017" and “0142”. Their mobile services are provided over the 900 & 1800 MHz GSM band and as July 2005,...
Berhad, the largest telecommunications company in Malaysia with overseas operations in India and Indonesia.
A well-known figure in the telecoms space Sandip Das joined Maxis in January 2007 after an impressive track record with Hutchison Essar Limited (now known as Vodafone Essar
Vodafone Essar
Vodafone Essar, formerly Hutchison Essar, is a cellular operator in India that covers 23 telecom circles in India. It is based in Mumbai. On July 2011, Vodafone Group agreed terms for the buy-out of its partner Essar from its Indian mobile phone business. The UK firm paid $5.46 billion to its...
Limited), one of India’s largest mobile operators in India, where he started its operations from scratch in 1994 and left the company as its Deputy Managing Director.
Early life
Sandip Das was born in 1958 in Cuttack, a city in Orissa, an east coast state in India. His father, an aeronautical engineer placed high importance on education and as such, Sandip and his two younger brothers were educated in the finest schools.He holds a First Class Mechanical Engineering degree from the Regional Engineering College (now known as National Institute of Technology), Rourkela in India and a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from the Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi.
Career
Sandip began his career with the Indian consumer durable giant Usha International, Shriram Group, where he started as a Management Trainee and left as Joint Divisional Manager after 10 years of service. He then spent 5 years as the Franchise Head of Toyota cars and Hino trucks with the Al Futtaim Motors of the Al Futtaim Group in Dubai, UAE.Subsequently, after returning to India, Sandip joined Hutchison Essar, then known as Hutchison Max Telecom where he started the company’s operations in 1994 and was its first employee. He spent 13 years in the company, including his time as CEO of Hutchison Max Telecom’s paging division,subsequently made COO of Hutchison Max Telecom in June 1998 where HMTL was an established market leader in Mobile Services and later as the Deputy Managing Director and Director on the Board of Hutchison Essar Limited. During his time with Hutchison, Sandip was a well-known and respected figure in India for his impressive track record in building the company. In an interview in May 2009, Sandip said, “I started with Hutchison in 1994. When I left, it had 25 million subscribers. Two months later, the company was sold for US$22 billion to Vodafone. I feel very proud of this achievement as I started the company’s operations from scratch”.
In 2007, following the likes of Vodafone’s Arun Sarin
Arun Sarin
Arun Sarin was the CEO of Britain's Vodafone Group plc. On June 29, 2008, he announced his resignation as CEO of Vodafone Group. He is a senior adviser at the private equity firm KKR. He serves on the board of directors of Cisco Systems and Safeway, Inc...
and Orange’s Sanjiv Ahuja
Sanjiv Ahuja
Sanjiv Ahuja is currently Chairman and CEO of LightSquared a company that is developing a wholesale-only nationwide 4G LTE Long Term Evolution wireless broadband communications network integrated with satellite coverage. The company is the result of Harbinger Capital Partners acquisition in March,...
, India boasted another helmsman in the International Telecoms Space when Sandip Das was appointed the Chief Executive Officer of Maxis Communications Berhad, the largest telecommunications operator in Malaysia.
Besides being the Executive Director and CEO of Maxis Communications Berhad, Sandip also serves as Director on the Board of Aircel
Aircel
Aircel group is a mobile phone service provider in India. It offers both prepaid and postpaid GSM cellular phone coverage throughout India. The Aircel group is a joint venture between Maxis Communications Berhad of Malaysia and Sindya Securities & Investments Private Limited, whose current...
in India. In addition, Sandip also serves the Boards of Sri Lanka Telecom
Sri Lanka Telecom
Sri Lanka Telecom PLC is the premier telecommunications services provider in Sri Lanka and one of the country’s most valuable blue chip companies with an annual turnover in excess of Rs 40 billion...
PLC and Mobitel (Sri Lanka)
Mobitel (Sri Lanka)
Mobitel Ltd. is a mobile phone network in Sri Lanka. It is wholly owned by Sri Lanka Telecom . The network offers a variety of services and currently operates a GSM/GPRS/EDGE/UMTS/HSPA network utilising 3.5G technology. Mobitel was the first 3.5G operator in Sri Lanka and South Asia. It covers...
and is also a board member of Bridge Mobile Pte Ltd (Bridge Alliance
Bridge Alliance
The Bridge Alliance is a business alliance of eleven major mobile telecommunications companies in Asia and Australia. The alliance is built on seamless service connectivity and a suite of integrated value-added services for all alliance members' subscribers while roaming on each other's networks...
), a strategic alliance of regional telecommunications provider. He also served for 2 years on the Board of the Global GSM Development Fund and was the Chairman of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) Service Industry Panel.
In November 2009, Sandip led the company’s re-listing on the Malaysian Stock Exchange (Bursa Malaysia
Bursa Malaysia
Bursa Malaysia is an exchange holding company approved under Section 15 of the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007. It operates a fully integrated exchange, offering the complete range of exchange-related services including trading, clearing, settlement and depository services.- History :Bursa...
) in what was Southeast Asia’s biggest IPO worth over US$3 billion. Recently, Sandip also led Maxis controlled subsidiary, Aircel
Aircel
Aircel group is a mobile phone service provider in India. It offers both prepaid and postpaid GSM cellular phone coverage throughout India. The Aircel group is a joint venture between Maxis Communications Berhad of Malaysia and Sindya Securities & Investments Private Limited, whose current...
in India in the successful third generation (3G
3G
3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 specifications by the International Telecommunication Union...
) and broadband wireless access
Broadband wireless access
Wireless Broadband refers to technology that provides high-speed wireless Internet access or computer networking access over a wide area.-The term broadband:...
(BWA) spectrum auctions where Aircel bagged 3G spectrum in 13 of the 22 telecom circles in India and BWA spectrum in 8 circles.