IPKO towards bankruptcy, the last five years you've been working on a waste.

According to the exclusive documents of the independent audience “Deloite”, which is owned by the portal, the second mobile phone operator in the country last year that has closed it for profit was 2014, respectively, about 300 thousand euros, while the last five years have declared losses of over 11m euros, although the company's total revenues along 2015-2018 total amounted to 282m euros.

According to these documents, 2018 IPKO has closed 72.2m euros in revenues, though it has declared 518m euros in losses.
Even in 2017 the company's revenues have reached 71.8m euros, while the company has declared losses of 2.6m euros.
In 2016, IPKO's revenues have been 70m euros, while the company has declared the highest loss, 5.7m euros, respectively.
Over 68m euros were IPKO revenues in 2015, until the company's declared losses amounted to 2.5m euros.

Based on documents audited by the renowned company “Deloite”, by 2015-2018 I PKO has secured access from the 282m-euro mobile phone market, while during this period it has declared losses worth 11.3m euros.

According to these audited documents, the annual cost of IPKO personnel has not been higher than 3m euros, while over 2m euros has been spent annually on agent tariffs (commissions), 1m euros for media advertising, 373,000 euros in rent expenditures, about 340 thousand euros in accommodation and travel costs, etc.

Gashi: Telecommunications services deteriorated, customer complaints increased

The portal “Front Online” has sent questions to the IPKO office on Monday about the company's most inflow and declared losses, which are found in the independent audience's report, “Deloite”, but they have not responded.

While Naim Gashi, economics expert, said corporate revenues do not necessarily reflect on company profits for two reasons: The first depends on the level of operational spending and the second on the investment level.

According to him, what we have seen in recent years services on the telecommunications market have deteriorated, and customer complaints have increased. This means that we do not have significant investments in this sector”, Gashi stated.

According to Gashi, having a competition on the brink of bankruptcy, such as Kosovo Telecom, Ipko has not been motivated to invest in technical services and capacities, so it is interesting that they perform with losses.

IPKO sold out?

Slovenia's July 2019 Telekom has released 100 per cent of the operator's shares in the market IPKO in Kosovo. As Slovenia's media have recognised, the decision to sell shares is in co-ordination with Slovenia's Telekom group strategy.

“In March 2018 Slovenia Telekom has become sole shareholder IPKO Telecommunications following the purchase of 6.89 per cent of the shares, which were of several smaller shareholders”.

“Fort Online” sources say Slovenia Telekom is at the end of the operator's sales process IPKO, with the case of this latter's management, is making preparations to get to the new management.

Otherwise, Slovenia's Telekom in 2005 had selected Kosovo to invest in the telecommunications market, buying shares in the country's internet service provider, IPKO.

The second mobile phone license in Kosovo had paid Slovenia's Telekom 75m euros, while they had implemented investments in the telecom infrastructure worth 200m euros. This was once the biggest foreign investment in Kosovo.

Initially, in addition to Slovenia's Telekom, shareholder at IPKO has been former US Ambassador to Kosovo Akan Ismaili, Bujar Musa, Madeline Albright, James O'Brian, etc.