KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 — Axiata Group Bhd’s shares on Bursa Malaysia were up in the early session today, driven by positive development on its proposed merger exercise with Digi.com Bhd which is scheduled to be signed by the end of this month.

As at 9.39am, the counter rose 4.0 sen to RM3.96 with 440,000 shares changing hands.

In a news report yesterday, its president and group chief executive officer Datuk Izzaddin Idris said both Axiata and Norway’s Telenor Group have completed the due diligence that was required by both sides.

"We are in the midst of finalising the definitive agreement and we hope to be able to sign the agreement shortly. That could be in a matter of days or a week depending on the resolution of some issues.

"During the announcement we made on April 8, we said that the merger talk would be concluded by the end of the second quarter this year, so we still have about 15 days to deliver the result,” he told a virtual press conference after Axiata’s annual general meeting (AGM) yesterday. — Bernama