Bangladesh’s telecoms regulator, as a condition for final approval of the merger of Robi Axiata and Airtel by the country’s high court, is requiring the company to offer all Airtel employees voluntary retirement.

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission also said the new company must inform it of any Airtel terminations for three years after the merger, the Daily Star reported. Airtel has about 450 staff in Bangladesh.

The newspaper noted that the country’s leading operator Grameenphone announced a similar scheme in June, which was taken up by about 350 employees.

Last week the prime minister’s office approved the Robi-Airtel merger, which was first announced in January.

The deal still awaits approval by the high court, which is expected soon.

The merger of Robi Axiata and Airtel Bangladesh will give the combined entity, Robi, a customer base of 39 million and a 28 per cent market share, pushing it past current number two Banglalink with a 24.5 per cent share.