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Myanmar is at the beginning of a telecoms boom, and consumers will soon have access to a plethora of new services that can fully alter the way business, social activities, education, and every aspect of society is run. Myanma SIM cards at one time retailed for $3000 each, severely limiting access, but as of 2014 citizens can connect their phones for just $1.50. The entrance of new players to the sector is expected to create demand for a number of ICT services companies, drawing upon the skills of web designers, network professionals and programmers. However, education and human resources are a major challenge and local talent is hard to find. As the sector develops, access to information will enable the country’s citizens to thrive in areas that have been blocked for decades. This chapter contains a roundtable with Takashi Nagashima, Managing Director, KSGM; Ross Cormack, CEO, Ooredoo Myanmar; Peter Furberg, CEO, Telenor Myanmar; and U Shane Thu Aung, CEO, Yatanarpon Teleport/Royal Yatanarpon; and an interview with U Thein Oo, Chairman, Myanmar ICT Development Corporation (MIDC).

Myanmar has already hit its investment target of $4bn-5bn for the 2014/15 fiscal year six months ahead of schedule, thanks in part to the energy sector, which attracted $800m of investment in the first half of the fiscal year. As of December 2014 revenue from foreign investments in the oil and gas sector came to more than $15.1bn, second only to the power sector, which stood at $19.3bn. This represents about 30% of the country’s total foreign investments. As Myanmar works to promote renewable energy to complement its insufficient electricity supply, new opportunities within the sector have opened up for foreign investors who can help to boost the country’s power generation. In the long term a fully developed electrification system, along with offshore gas exploration, look set to accelerate Myanmar’s growth in all aspects of the energy sector. To achieve this growth, the government must keep up the pace of its reform programme, in turn speeding up the country’s integration into the world economy. This chapter contains interviews with U Zay Aung, Minister of Energy; Ken Tun, CEO of Parami Energy Group; and U Zeya Thura Mon, CEO, Zeya & Associates.

While Myanmar’s banking sector has much to do in order to catch up to its neighbours, it should remain on track to expand rapidly as the economy grows and penetration deepens. Regulatory reforms will be key to expansion and foreign access. Elsewhere in the financial services sector, Yangon Stock Exchange (YSX) is Myanmar’s fourth try at launching a securities market, but it is by far the most serious project to date. Its formal launch date is set for late 2015, when it will be inaugurated along with a new securities exchange commission. There is extensive support for a local bourse in Myanmar, however it will likely take time to properly ensure that stock is able to trade freely and securely and to solve questions regarding the extent of foreigners’ participation. Meanwhile, the insurance sector, with private insurers just beginning to develop since 2013, is in its early stages after a long period in which the sector was fully nationalised. This chapter contains interviews with U Win Shein, Minister of Finance; and Lim Cheng Teck, CEO for ASEAN, Standard Chartered; as well as a roundtable with Andrew Geczy, CEO of International and Institutional Banking, ANZ Bank; Chartsiri Sophonpanich, President, Bangkok Bank; and Abdul Farid Alias, Group President and CEO, Maybank.

Myanmar has seen an extraordinary surge in trade and investment in the few years since emerging from isolation. Out of the $9.5bn in FDI permissions granted from April 2012 to October 2014, $2.9bn went to projects in manufacturing; $2.2bn to those in real estate, hotels and tourism; and $2.5bn to transport and communications. Foreign investment in many sectors, however, still remains banned and the list of restricted sectors is set out in regulations that can be revised by the government without parliamentary approval. In this light, the government under President U Thein Sein has been gradually liberalising Myanmar’s trade regime. Largely due to a reform passed in April 2013 that eliminated export and import licensing requirements, the country’s ranking for international trade jumped from 135th to 103rd in the World Bank’s “Doing Business 2015” survey. This chapter contains interviews with Gregory So, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Hong Kong; U Win Myint, Minister of Commerce; and Serge Pun, Chairman, Serge Pun & Associates Myanmar.

This chapter contains an outline of the legal framework in which local and foreign investors operate in Oman. This chapter includes an interview with Paul Sheridan, Partner, Dentons.