Fundamentals continue to look pretty good to us in Latin America, with market repair continuing across wireless markets, and further consolidation likely. Despite a strong 2025, valuations still look compelling across the region in our view too. Top picks: Liberty Latin America, Vivo, AMX and Megacable. We also upgrade our Millicom pt to $70.
2025 was a very strong year for African Telcos, as macro stabilized and pricing recovered across the continent but especially in Nigeria. We think 2026 should be more of the same as stocks re-rate due to strength in the core coupled with exposure to digital. Very strong performance by Airtel Africa means Vodacom becomes our top pick in Africa, and VEON our top pick overall.
Singtel and XLSmart were the standout performers in 2025 among ASEAN telcos as continued weak macro held back other markets even those which have seen consolidation. In 2026, we think the benefit of consolidation should be more apparent in the latter. Singtel and TRUE remain our top picks in the region.
2025 was when the EM Telco bull market really took off. Two of our top picks returned >100% and four more 50%+. We make one change to our top picks for 2026 from 2025, introducing Megacable in exchange for IHS Towers. In a separate note out today we run through the Themes that we think will drive performance in 2026.
EM Telcos have been strong for some time, but 2025 was a banner year. Multiples have expanded somewhat, but we remain bullish, as we think EM Telcos operate on a long cycle driven by market structure which has now definitively turned up We therefore see EM Telcos in a true stealth bull market as conditions still seem ripe for the best to exhibit pricing power and hence GDP+ revenue growth and rising ROIC. This note explains the key themes we see for 2026.
2025 was a banner year for EM Telcos, following on from a good 2023 and 2024. As we head towards the New Year we thought it might be useful to highlight a few of the thematic pieces we wrote last year that we think help to highlight why EM Telcos are in a clear and sustained bull market and why therefore we are confident that 2026 will be another good year for investors in the space, as fundamentals continue to look much stronger than in the past. I hope you enjoy reading these and happy holiday...
VEON’s Beeline Kazakhstan and Rakuten Symphony Collaborate to Advance Next-Generation Connectivity and Digital Infrastructure Almaty, Dubai and Tokyo, December 23, 2025: VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON), a global digital operator (“VEON”), and Rakuten Group, Inc. (TSE: 4755), announced today that Beeline Kazakhstan Holding, VEON’s digital operator in Kazakhstan, and Rakuten Symphony, a subsidiary of Rakuten Group, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore strategic collaboration on next-generation connectivity, digital services, and cloud-native network infrastructure. The MoU es...
VEON’s Mobilink Microfinance Bank Launches Islamic Banking Operations in Pakistan Dubai and Islamabad, December 19, 2025 – VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON), a global digital operator, announced today that its financial services subsidiary, Mobilink Microfinance Bank Ltd., has launched Islamic banking operations in Pakistan, expanding access to Shariah-compliant financial services in in response to growing customer demand. Mobilink Bank inaugurated its first dedicated Islamic banking branch this week in Karachi, Pakistan’s economic hub. A second Islamic banking branch is scheduled to commence opera...
India’s mobile revenue growth moderated as expected, after lapping last year’s tariff increase. As the IPO of Jio nears, we foresee another potential price increase. Separately for Vodafone Idea, we think AGR relief seems likely but we question whether this is sufficient to enable the company to reach “escape velocity” and become a viable 3rd operator again.
Unfortunately, this report is not available for the investor type or country you selected.
Report is subscription only.
Thank you, your report is ready.
Thank you, your report is ready.