Rashid Khan, President & CEO of Mobilink is retiring from active service this week. He is a veteran of the telecom industry and has held several leading positions for the past 20 years. An elderly iconic figure, Khan has played an instrumental role in growing Pakistan's cellular industry to what it is today.
A staunch advocate of the Pakistani market, he was successful in sharing his vision of Pakistan's telecom environment to his shareholders resulting in bringing significant investment to the country over the years. Paying tribute to Khan's contribution, Minister of State for IT & Telecom, Anusha Rehman Khan said, "Rashid Khan played a dominant role in the transformation of cellular industry in Pakistan. In challenging environment his contribution to the telecom sector will be remembered for times to come. I wish him good health and the very best in all his future endeavours. "Throughout his tenure, Khan provided a balanced approach in achieving the overall objectives of all the stakeholders.
Commenting on his retirement, Dr Syed Ismail Shah, Chairman PTA said: "Rashid Khan will be remembered for his significant contributions to the cellular industry. He was always supportive to the government's requirements in the wake of given challenges. We hope that PTA will continue to receive his valuable advice on the relevant matters. We wish him happy retirement."
Khan started his career in 1972 with Pakistan Television. After earning an M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering, he worked in Silicon Valley for 15 years where he acquired extensive working experience in the technology sector and was awarded patents for his inventions. After working for six years in Paktel, Khan joined Mobilink in 2000 where he contributed to Mobilink's phenomenal growth. In 2006 he was appointed CEO of Banglalink in Bangladesh. A late entrant in the marketplace, Banglalink had the honour of becoming the fastest growing cellular company and achieved a dominant second position in a competitive six-player market under Khan's leadership. After his appointment as the CEO of Mobilink in 2008, Mobilink's subscriber base grew from 30 million to 38 million as it launched 3G services. Rashid also played an important role as an industry leader and spokesperson for the industry most notable the change to Calling Party Pays regime, the Next Generation Mobile Services auction and several other key milestones of the industry.
Commenting on Khan's retirement, Jo Lunder Group CEO of VimpelCom, Mobilink's parent company, said: "I would like to thank Rashid Khan who has made a significant contribution to Mobilink and Banglalink over the past decade, in particular establishing Mobilink as the leading operator in Pakistan. We wish Rashid a long and happy retirement."-PR