About e& international

e& international drives the Group’s portfolio of international telecommunication and digital assets outside the UAE. With operations spanning 15 countries across three geographic regions (Middle East, Africa and Asia), e& international reaches over 148 million customers and is a major financial contributor to the Group.

Accelerating international reach and impact

e& international continued to expand to new markets and create increasing value during 2023. All operating companies delivered strong performance with solid revenue growth, despite macro-economic headwinds in several countries. Additionally, our operating companies continued to lead in customer experience. During the year, we delivered on our ambition to grow inorganically. We are consolidating in our current markets, with PTCL Group announcing the acquisition of Telenor Pakistan. We are also expanding the portfolio globally, with our acquisition of a controlling stake of PPF Telecom’s assets in four countries in Central and Eastern Europe.

In 2023, e& international introduced its Partner Networks Programme, designed to provide access to e&’s growing benefits and cutting-edge expertise to other operators. The programme has yielded timely progress, with partnerships signed with four operators covering five countries to date. e& international also launched its first digital telco brand, Onic, in Pakistan this year. In collaboration with e&’s joint venture with Circles Life, the ambition is to expand our digital footprint to other markets.

Strategic growth across our international footprint

Our LEAD strategy framework outlines our international ambition across four pillars:

  • At the heart of e& international’s strategy is an acceleration in growth of organic revenue across our international footprint. Our continued success is testament to our market-leading customer experience, driven by superior network quality and innovative commercial propositions. While maintaining this competitive edge, our strategy is to expand and further deploy our best-in-class AI and advanced analytics capabilities to maximise revenue from customer value management (“CVM”) and boost growth. Amidst the uncertainty of the current macro-economic climate, we will also continue to focus on strengthening the resilience of our operating model, tightening our cost base and optimising capital structure wherever necessary.

  • A central component of e& Group’s strategy is to continue to pursue international expansion. Diversification through M&A reduces risk of our portfolio and grows our scale, providing access to a larger customer base for e& Group’s digital services. Following the completion of our acquisition of a controlling stake in PPF Telecom, expected in 2024, we will be integrating its operating companies into the e& international business unit, while also pursuing further expansion opportunities. Our M&A strategy remains focused on wellpositioned operators in stable markets that can support our growth objectives, while also generating a significant synergistic upside.

  • Digital growth is a critical area of focus for e& international as we strive to achieve our mission of becoming the centre of digital life for customers around the world. In addition to accelerating penetration of digital channels, Fintech services, gaming and a raft of B2B digital services, we will also be focusing on the expansion of our digital telco joint venture (JV) with Circles Life to other markets both within and outside the current footprint. Leveraging the platforms and capabilities within the wider group, we also plan to support execution of digital growth ambitions through commercial partnerships and, where relevant, inorganic growth.

  • As e& continues to expand, we see an ever-growing opportunity to capitalise on the size and strength of the Group and extract further value from synergies. This not only includes extending synergies to newly acquired operating companies through integration, but also maximising value creation within the existing footprint. Synergies are delivered through a combination of sharing knowledge, best practices and capabilities between our markets, including AI and digital product development, as well as leveraging e& Group’s procurement and wholesale functions to drive sizeable scale-based revenue upside and cost savings.

Revenue and EBITDA YoY Growth

Beyond financial performance, our operating companies continue to lead in customer experience, with four of our five largest markets ranking #1 or #2 in NPS.

Customer Experience

(NPS, October 2023 YTD)

Expanding our footprint in Central and Eastern Europe

In August, e& announced its intention to acquire a controlling stake in PPF Telecom’s assets in Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia. Once closed, this acquisition will expand e& international’s footprint to 19 countries and include a new region of Central and Eastern Europe.

The PPF acquisition fits with e& international’s ambition to expand and diversify internationally. The four markets offer favourable conditions, including stable currencies, well-established regulatory frameworks, and competitive operating environments with solid growth.

The PPF assets are highly complementary to e&, providing significant opportunity to drive synergies and accelerate growth. The transaction also provides a platform for future expansion in Central and Eastern Europe and beyond.

Creating value through AI

In 2023, e& international continued to play a pivotal role in creating more value for the Group by expanding and delivering “AI-as-a-Service” to external clients across various sectors and geographies, while continuing to serve its operating companies.

e& international’s team of Data Scientists, Data Engineers, Gen AI Specialists and Domain Experts worked closely with clients to understand their unique needs and develop customised solutions that deliver measurable results.

By leveraging different technologies and platforms, e& international’s AI team delivered many cutting-edge solutions to operating companies, e& Group functions and business units, as well as external clients.

  • Deployed over 250 machine learning models which formed the backbone of customer value management (“CVM”) Operations in operating companies
  • Developed an in-house insights generator tool by leveraging Gen AI
  • Helped Hassantuk programme management team in the UAE to develop AI driven alarm prediction models as part of the predictive maintenance programme
  • Delivered state-of-the-art AI driven solution, to identify hidden affluent customers within the existing base, to a large bank in the UAE to help them gain value maximisation
  • Developed industry agnostic machine learning based recommendation tool and deployed across multiple operating companies
  • Delivering CVM engagement as part of e& Partner Networks Programme

e& AI has also entered into strategic partnerships with Data/CVM platform providers, research and publications firms and AI universities in order to fuel the expansion of AI as a service portfolio.

Progress and achievements across our international markets

e& Egypt

Egypt faced unprecedented macro-economic headwinds in 2023, including record inflation, currency devaluation and rising interest rates. In the face of these difficult conditions, e& Egypt delivered healthy growth for both revenue and EBITDA in local currency.

During the year, e& Egypt grew across all segments – consumer, business and wholesale. The consumer customer base crossed the milestone of 30 million subscribers. e& Egypt continuously invests in its network to improve performance and customer experience, driving steady reductions in churn over the year.

e& Egypt continued to execute its transformation to become the country’s leading technology company. Multiple merchants and lifestyle offerings were added to the My Etisalat app, initiating its transformation into a super-app. During the year, the Company announced several Fintech ventures including the launch of SuperPay by e&, a Fintech venture offering a variety of payment and acceptance solutions, and e& Neo, a venture with Mashreq Bank enabling banking services through the My Etisalat app.

e& Egypt is also delivering on its digital agenda through impressive growth of monthly active users and transaction value on etisalat cash. The Company continues to expand its innovative digital entertainment offering with the launch of Twist TV, a standalone video streaming application. Twist Music grew rapidly in 2023, as e& Egypt delivers superior experience through its customer-centric approach tailored to the Egyptian market.

Maroc Telecom Group

Maroc Telecom Group delivered growth and consistent financial performance in 2023, despite difficult macro-economic conditions. The Company maintained a high level of profitability, supported by cost optimisation efforts.

In Morocco, the Company faced headwinds from challenging regulatory measures and a highly competitive market. Maroc Telecom’s investments in Morocco in 2023 were focused on network modernisation and expansion, resulting in strong growth in mobile data and FTTH subscribers. Moov Africa subsidiaries also showcased revenue growth, despite challenging macro-economic and competitive challenges in some markets.

After a devastating earthquake hit Morocco in September, Maroc Telecom Group pledged to donate 700 million Moroccan Dirhams to disaster relief. The donation demonstrates the Group’s commitment to the country, its citizens and rehabilitation efforts.