SingTel Group

Singapore Telecommunications, commonly known as SingTel, is island-state Singapore's oldest telco of nearly 130 years.

The company has a history that traces back to 1879 when Singapore became one of the first cities in Asia to have telephone services--three years after the technology was patented by Alexander Graham Bell.

The telco's monopoly ended when the local telecommunications market was fully liberalized in April 2000, but today, it still holds the No. 1 spot in the Singapore market. SingTel offers a range of telecommunications and networking services, such as Internet access, fixed line telephony and mobile phone.

The Singaporean telco's ventures abroad have also borne fruit. Aside from a 100 percent owndership of Australia-based Optus, SingTel also has stakes in Thailand's Advanced Info Service, India's Bharti Group, Philippines' Globe Telecom, Bangladesh's Pacific Bangladesh Telecom, Indonesia's Telkomsel and Pakistan's Warid Telecom.