KUALA LUMPUR (April 7): U Mobile Sdn Bhd is finalising its collaboration with Telekom Malaysia Bhd (KL:TM), following the signing of a 5G access agreement between both parties in February this year.

U Mobile chief technology officer Woon Ooi Yuen said the company has started discussions with TM on the matter and that the companies are working towards implementing the partnership. However, he did not disclose the timeline.

“We just had a first kick-off meeting yesterday… [and are] finalising the agreement. We are on track to deliver 5G to Telekom Malaysia,” he told reporters after launching the group’s 5G network, ULTRA5G, on Tuesday (April 7).

TM announced on Feb 25 that it was going to terminate the agreement with Digital National Bhd (DNB) and access 5G services through U Mobile instead, though DNB rejected TM's early-termination notice, insisting the deal is valid till October 2032. TM maintained that it has followed the conditions laid out in their agreement for early termination, and that it has the right to switch to U Mobile.

DNB is a special-purpose vehicle under the Ministry of Finance (MOF) that was established in 2021 to deploy the nation’s 5G infrastructure and lease this out to mobile network operators. At the time, it was meant to be the country's sole 5G network provider, before the government transitioned from the single wholesale network model to a dual 5G network. U Mobile, controlled by tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan, was selected in November 2024 to deploy Malaysia’s second 5G network.

Meanwhile, TM, via its wholly-owned TM Technology Services Sdn Bhd, has issued a letter of award to U Mobile, which the latter accepted on Feb 24, 2026, for a three-year period to provide 5G wholesale services, ranging from system integration and testing to continuous optimisation. The contract value will be based on usage and agreed rates, with the three-year term starting upon the achievement of agreed milestones.

In the meantime, U Mobile has informed DNB of its intention to exit their 5G access agreement, saying it would issue a notice to DNB on phasing out use of the network, with a timeline to be announced later. 

Last May, U Mobile announced it was divesting its stake in DNB to the remaining shareholders of the wholesale 5G network operator for RM100,000, as the company geared up for the rollout of the country's second 5G network.

CelcomDigI Bhd (KL:CDB), Maxis Bhd (KL:MAXIS) and YTL Power International Bhd (KL:YTLPOWR) each acquired 33,333 shares from the transaction, while MOF Inc took one share. This resulted in MOF's stake in DNB increasing to 41.67% from 34.88%, while CelcomDigi, Maxis and YTL Power saw their respective stakes rising to 19.44% from 16.28%.

At the unveiling of its 5G network on Tuesday, U Mobile said the network has achieved 82.9% population coverage as of March 31, 2026, ahead of its July 2026 target.