Bharti Airtel has taken control of Warid Telecom, as Chris Tobit joined the company as managing director and chief executive officer for its Bangladesh operations.

Bharti that has recently acquired a 70 percent stake in Warid is set to start the official launch of its activities in Bangladesh.

Tobit, who has been with the Indian telecom giant for over 11 years and has held several senior positions, brings with him vast experience in general management, sales, marketing and international trade, Warid said in a statement yesterday.

Tobit had previously served as director of sales and operation, and enterprise business of Bharti.

Presently, Warid has 3.01 million customers in Bangladesh's six-operator mobile market that boasts 53.83 million customers.