Middle East and Southeast Asia telecoms company Ooredoo recently took advantage of a thawing in Myanmar's international relations to set up shop in one of the world's last untapped mobile phone markets. At Legal Week's Corporate Counsel Forum Singapore, general counsel Scott Weenink shared his experiences

Scott Weenink, general counsel Asia, Ooredoo: "Ooredoo specialises in emerging and frontier markets so Myanmar [where Ooredoo has recently been awarded a licence] is right in our sweet spot. I've probably been there about 30 times over the last couple of years. When you are going into a country like that you really need to take your time and get a good lay of the land. What we found in Myanmar was that there were several brokers and middlemen who claimed they knew what was going on but, in fact, knew very little. It was actually the people who admitted that reliable information was hard to come by who were more useful."

Nomita Nair, partner, Berwin Leighton Paisner: "Before Ooredoo could be granted a licence, a telecoms law had to be passed. Laws are passed almost every other week in Myanmar as the legal environment is constantly evolving. How do you manage this situation?"

Weenink: "It really is not dissimilar to many of the markets where we operate. Relationships are absolutely key. You've got to form connections with the regulators and the lawmakers so that you can have some input into the laws that are being formulated."

Ma Cherry Trivedi, managing director, Ayuroma International: "Doing business in Myanmar can be very unpredictable. In the mining sector I have seen people on the verge of signing a deal walk away because of a last-minute problem. In the agriculture sector I have seen large projects go to the final stage only for the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) to say no. And, once the contract has been signed, that is not the end of it. After the MIC has given you a piece of paper saying you can operate in a particular area, you have to find out who the local authority is and how to get local permits to operate there. So there are plenty of complications as you go in. You need a lot of patience to get anything done."

Phil Johnson, director, corporate investigations, Southeast Asia, Control Risks: "Over the last two years we have been working on up to eight projects a month advising on investment opportunities in Myanmar. But only a handful have actually led to an investment. There is a great deal of interest from the international business community coupled with a genuine desire within the Government at a very senior level to attract inward investment. But investors still face some difficult issues and that is down to the fact that Myanmar has come an incredibly long way in the last two years."

Weenink: "Our experience of the Government, and particularly the telecoms regulator, has been very positive in the sense that they have been trying to help us. But things move slowly and you have to be patient. When we applied to the MIC to establish a company in Myanmar we expected the process to take two or three weeks. Four months down the track, we finally got approval. So yes, patience is the key."

Trivedi: "You have to remember that this is a country on a fast track – rewriting laws as it goes along. I spent 22 years living in the US where the law books have many volumes. In Myanmar we have the Foreign Investment Law and it is a tiny book. Essentially that's your guide. I call it a guide, but in fact it is a skeleton."

Nair: "The most important feedback is that, in an environment where there is uncertainty surrounding the law, the Government wants to work with you to come up with solutions because it realises that if you, as a foreign investor, decide to pull out then it is not going to get the money. So it appreciates that it has to be a partnership.

"Some sectors are open to 100% of foreign investment, but there are many sectors, such as oil and gas and power, where you have to form a partnership with a local operator. Or you may simply feel you want to partner with a company because of its local knowledge. What are some of the red flags that investors should look out for?"

Johnson: "The big red flag for a foreign investor in Myanmar at this stage relates to US sanctions, because several intermediaries and brokers act as proxies for sanctioned entities. So there are basic things you can do such as check out the local office of a prospective partner. We've been involved in cases before where companies that have claimed to employ thousands of staff have turned out to be brass plate addresses. 

"The other red flag is when you come across former Government officials who claim they have influence over the authorities. In the last couple of years several officials have left the Government and set up their own private businesses as they see this period of opening up as a time to make hay while the sun is shining. People have left institutions like the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) either voluntarily – because they see an opportunity to use their connections – or because they have been forced out for being corrupt in the first place. 

"There are legitimate reasons to form a local partnership because Myanmar is a hard place to understand from a cultural perspective. Having a local partner can add value, but you have to ask precisely what people are bringing to the table and if it is a claimed connection with MOGE or a family relationship then that should set off some alarm bells. 

"The other thing I'd stress is that, contrary to perceptions, working with a local partner is not a pre-requisite for doing business in Myanmar. There is an assumption that, because the economy was closed for so long, you have to work with local partners and brokers to get things done. But in the recent telecoms licensing process, neither Ooredoo nor the other successful international company, Telenor, tied up with local equity partners. That was a real watershed moment because it showed that you don't have to have local partners."

Trivedi: "There are still people who believe that if they hire someone's son or daughter they will reach their objective faster. It used to work like that, but it doesn't any more. So if you are looking to work with a local partner you need to assess exactly what it brings to the table – it could be a workforce, land or a factory – and limit the relationship to that factor. You are better off dealing with the upper echelons of the Government yourself because senior Government officials are more open to direct contact than if you try and bring in a middleman."

• For details of Legal Week's Corporate Counsel Forum Singapore 2014, email: [email protected]