Tigo in Panama

The figures below come from ASEP, Panama’s utilities regulator, from Millicom’s filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, from Tigo’s own help centre and from the trade press, each with its date.

From Movistar to Tigo

Tigo’s mobile network started life as Movistar Panamá, the local arm of Telefónica. Millicom closed its purchase of Telefónica Móviles Panamá on 29 August 2019, buying through Cable Onda, the cable operator it had controlled since December 2018. That deal brought about 1.6 million mobile customers and a 4G network then available to 80% of the population. On 27 August 2020 the mobile business dropped the Movistar name and took the Tigo brand. Millicom bought the remaining 20% of Cable Onda, now called Telecomunicaciones Digitales, in June 2022. Its annual report for 2025 lists the mobile company, Grupo de Comunicaciones Digitales, as wholly owned.

How many lines does Tigo have?

ASEP does not split its mobile statistics by operator. Its indicator tables count 6,127,200 mobile subscriptions in Panama in 2024, an estimated figure, with 5,009,787 on prepaid and 1,117,413 on contract. Of that 2024 total, 4,546,100 were LTE customers. Millicom’s own count for Tigo was 2,946,000 mobile customers on 31 December 2025, against 2,820,000 a year before and 2,642,000 at the end of 2023.

4G now, 5G later

Movistar Panamá announced its 4G LTE service in March 2015, on the 700 MHz band. It opened in selected parts of the capital, among them Tocumen International Airport, Ancón and El Dorado. Tigo’s help centre still names that band, LTE band 28 at 700 MHz, as the one a phone must support for its LTE, and says phones fall back to 3G where LTE does not reach. Millicom’s report for 2025 lists Tigo’s Panamanian spectrum as 2x15 MHz at 700 MHz, 2x12.5 MHz at 850 MHz, 2x20 MHz at 1900 MHz and 2x20 MHz in the AWS band, with every licence running to 2036.

In July 2026 Tigo said it would pay the state between $5 million and $6 million for new spectrum in the 3.5 GHz and 2.6 GHz bands. It planned a commercial 5G launch between the end of 2026 and the start of 2027.

eSIM on Tigo lines

Tigo offers eSIM to its prepaid and postpaid mobile customers. Its help centre says the account holder must come to a Tigo store with an identity document, and the line is installed by scanning a QR code. The list of compatible models runs from the iPhone 13 to the iPhone 18, with Samsung, Honor and Motorola phones as well. An iPhone 16 bought in the United States, which works only with eSIM, can run on a Tigo line if it supports LTE band 28.

Registering a Tigo SIM

New prepaid lines on every Panamanian network have needed registration since 15 November 2023. Tigo cites ASEP’s guidelines and Law 51 of 2009, as amended by Law 13 of 2018. Foreign customers show a passport; Panamanians show both sides of their identity card. The form at registro.tigo.com.pa, also reached through a link sent by SMS, asks for a name, a date of birth, the document number and clear photos of the document. Until the form is complete, the line’s services are not activated.

Install the eSIMSwitch it on after landingNo connection