VEON: Best International Telecoms Services Partner Global 2020

Amsterdam-based VEON operates globally through brand partnerships to connect and technologically empower more than 200 million customers across nine markets spanning three continents. Russia is VEON’s largest market, and its massive size and sophisticated development offer impressive opportunities. VEON considers Pakistan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to be high-growth markets in the “sweet-spot of rapid services adoption”. The company has established a dominant presence in early-stage markets — such as Bangladesh and Algeria — with highly favourable long-term demographics. Despite divergent revenue streams because of global lockdowns, VEON has managed to bring 4G subscription to 73 million customers — and generate quarterly Group revenues of some $2bn. It rolled out country-specific plans in response to the pandemic, offering free access to emergency hotlines, healthcare websites and educational platforms. VEON has provided free data-roaming for stranded citizens and perks for frontline workers. It has also contributed more than $3.5m to support Covid-19 programmes. The company invests in best-in-class technology and network infrastructure to provide customers in developing countries with the connectivity needed for individual empowerment and opportunity, often overcoming physical and socioeconomic barriers with offerings like digital financial services. It deploys predictive, cognitive technologies and big data analytics to anticipate, and meet, evolving customer demands. VEON is not so much client-centric as customer-obsessed. Business operations are aligned with its core values of entrepreneurism, transparency, collaboration and innovation. For helping communities and governments to bridge the digital divide towards more inclusive prosperity, the CFI.co judging panel presents VEON with the 2020 global award for Best International Telecoms Services Partner.