Ayar Labs raises USD 500 mln Series E to scale co-packaged optics production
UNITED STATES 01:06

Ayar Labs raises USD 500 mln Series E to scale co-packaged optics production

US-based optical interconnect company Ayar Labs has closed a USD 500 million Series E funding round to expand high-volume production and testing capacity for its co-packaged optics (CPO) technology, bringing total funding to USD 870 million and valuing the company at $3.75 billion. The round was led by Neuberger Berman, with participation from institutional investors including ARK Invest, Insight Partners, Qatar Investment Authority, Sequoia Global Equities and 1789 Capital. 

Smart revenue grows 5% in Q4, amid expanding ARPU and 5G adoption
PHILIPPINES 3 MRT

Smart revenue grows 5% in Q4, amid expanding ARPU and 5G adoption

Philippines operator Smart Communications saw its fourth-quarter revenue grow 5 percent sequentially. Fourth-quarter revenue growth was mainly boosted by higher ARPU, the company said. Smart reported 606,079 net additions in the fourth quarter, while churn reached 2.5 percent at end-2025.

Mexico's TV Azteca files for bankruptcy protection
MEXICO 3 MRT

Mexico's TV Azteca files for bankruptcy protection

Mexican broadcaster TV Azteca (Grupo Salinas) announced that it will initiate a financial, corporate and operational restructuring via voluntary bankruptcy protection, following approval by shareholders. In a statement, CEO Rafael Rodriguez described the move as "a last resort tool aimed at preserving the value of the company, ensuring the continuity of operations and facilitating the orderly fulfilment of obligations without interrupting its functioning."

Time dotCom's profit jumps nearly 11% in 2025, lifts dividend payout cap to 75%
MALAYSIA 3 MRT

Time dotCom's profit jumps nearly 11% in 2025, lifts dividend payout cap to 75%

Malaysian operator Time dotCom posted revenue of MYR 1.79 billion in 2025, which represents an increase of 6.1 percent year-on-year. Revenue growth was mainly boosted by increased demand for Time's data and connectivity offerings, with Retail and Enterprise continuing to be the primary contributors. Profit after tax jumped 10.8 percent year-on-year to MYR 427.1 million.

AT&T to expand fibre coverage with 4 mln addresses in 2026
UNITED STATES 3 MRT

AT&T to expand fibre coverage with 4 mln addresses in 2026

AT&T expects to reach over 40 million addresses covered with FTTH by the end of this year, an increase of around 8 million from the end of 2025. Around half the growth comes from its acquisition of Lumen's fibre business earlier this year and the remainder from organic construction. The company said this puts it on track to reach its goal of over 60 million premises covered with fibre by 2030.

ITU Partner2Connect scheme receives over USD 2 bln pledges from Mobily and Ooredoo
MIDDLE EAST 3 MRT

ITU Partner2Connect scheme receives over USD 2 bln pledges from Mobily and Ooredoo

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has declared new industry pledges to its Partner2Connect Digital Coalition that boost total commitments to the internet access scheme beyond USD 82 billion​. The pledges announced at MWC 2026 by ITU secretary-general Doreen Bogdan-Martin include USD 1.72 billion from Mobily to invest in data centres, submarine cables and 5G and next-generation network infrastructure, and a USD 500 million investment in submarine and terrestrial optical fibre infrastructure by

SNS-JU awards EUR 116 mln funding to 20 6G research projects
EUROPE 3 MRT

SNS-JU awards EUR 116 mln funding to 20 6G research projects

The EU's Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (SNS-JU) has allocated EUR 116 million in public funds to 20 R&D projects aligned with European 6G research and innovation. Announced at Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, this additional cohort of 6G and beyond-5G projects takes the total number supported by the SNS-JU to 100. The joint undertaking will invest another EUR 270 million this year and into 2027. Since 2021, SNS-JU has supplied EUR 630 million in public funds, provided through the EU'

TalkTalk Group agrees new GBP 115 million funding facilities
UNITED KINGDOM 3 MRT

TalkTalk Group agrees new GBP 115 million funding facilities

TalkTalk Group has agreed new funding facilities of GBP 115 million from its existing shareholder and lender group. The funds will be used to strengthen its working capital position, support development of its product and customer service capabilities, and invest in fibre network infrastructure.

Uniti forecasts higher results in 2026 following Windstream merger
UNITED STATES 3 MRT

Uniti forecasts higher results in 2026 following Windstream merger

US operator Uniti reported slightly better-than-expected adjusted EBITDA for 2025, following the integration of the former Windstream business. The figures reached USD 1.17 billion, compared to an outlook for USD 1.11-1.16 billion, on annual revenues of USD 2.23 billion, in line with the forecast. For FY26, Uniti forecast a strong increase in results thanks to a full year of the acquisition, with revenues of USD 3.605-3.655 billion and adjusted EBITDA of USD 1.425-1.475 billion.

Korea proposes USD 300 mln AI Fund with Singapore by 2030
KOREA, REPUBLIC OF 3 MRT

Korea proposes USD 300 mln AI Fund with Singapore by 2030

South Korean president Lee Jae Myung said the country will work with Singapore to establish a global investment fund in the city-state by 2030 aimed at attracting USD 300 million for startups and the AI sector, according to Yonhap, citing government sources. Speaking at the Korea-Singapore AI Connect Summit in Singapore, Lee said the two countries would seek closer cooperation in AI research and investment. The event brought together government officials, companies and sector experts from both sides.

SES expects stable FY revenue and EBITDA after negative organic growth in 2025
GLOBAL 2 MRT

SES expects stable FY revenue and EBITDA after negative organic growth in 2025

Satellite operator SES is guiding for stable organic performance in both revenue and EBITDA for the whole of 2026. In 2025, combined like-for-like revenues across SES and Intelsat decreased by 1.6 percent year-on-year to EUR 3.51 billion, while adjusted EBITDA fell by 12.1 percent to EUR 1.53 billion. Capex amounted to EUR 700 million annually and should now remain broadly unchanged in 2026 including spend on the meoSphere programme and Europe's Iris2 project, compared with the previous forecast of approxim

EchoStar grows mobile revenues, loses pay-TV income in Q4
UNITED STATES 2 MRT

EchoStar grows mobile revenues, loses pay-TV income in Q4

Echostar reported higher revenues and smaller losses from its mobile business in Q4 2025, despite little growth in customer numbers. It ended the year with 7.51 million mobile subscribers, down by 9,000 compared to September. The pay-TV base at Dish also continued to shrink, with 168,000 subscribers lost in Q4 for a total 7.00 million. The group also took a large writedown of USD 1.2 billion on the value of its HughsNet satellite broadband business following the restructuring of its spectrum holdings in the

NIGERIA 2 MRT

Dimension Data secures NGN 20 bln bond funding to advance digital infrastructure

Dimension Data Nigeria has formally executed its NGN 20 billion (EUR 12.5 million) bond programme under Dimension Data SPV Funding, following approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Vanguard reported. It aims to address gaps in fibre coverage, limited enterprise connectivity and increasing demand for cloud, fintech, digital services, and Artificial Intelligence. DiData said the capital will be used to fund long-term investments in expanding network capacity, enhancing resilience, and sup

MEXICO 2 MRT

Televisa Q4 revenue down 4.5% to MXN 14.5 bln, cancels dividend

Mexican broadcaster and telecommunications operator Grupo Televisa reported revenues of MXN 14.5 billion in the final quarter of 2025, down 4.5 percent year on year due mainly to steep subscriber losses at its Sky-branded satellite TV unit, which posted a 16.8 percent slump in revenues. Fourth-quarter operating income increased by 6.1 percent year on year to MXN 5.9 billion, with a 40.9 percent margin, thanks to efficiency measures and Opex reductions.

EUROPE 2 MRT

GSMA and ESA launch EUR 100 mln fund to boost AI, 6G and space-mobile innovation

GSMA Foundry and the European Space Agency (ESA) announced new funding worth up to EUR 100 million to drive innovation at the intersection of mobile and space industries. The financial commitment, provided by ESA, aims to accelerate projects in artificial intelligence for non-terrestrial networks (AI x NTN), direct-to-device (D2D) communications, 5G/6G hubs and early-stage 6G technologies.

PHILIPPINES 2 MRT

Smart Communications revenue grows 5% in Q4, adds more than 600,000 customers

Philippines operator Smart Communications saw its revenue rise 5 percent quarter-on-quarter in the three months ended 31 December 2025. Fourth-quarter revenue growth was mainly boosted by higher ARPU. Smart Prepaid recorded a 5 percent sequential ARPU increase during the period, while its mass-market brand TNT posted a 3 percent uplift.

GHANA 2 MRT

MTN Ghana lifts FY revenue 36%

MTN Ghana has reported a year-on-year revenue increase of 36.1 percent to GHS 24.42 billion in the year to 31 December 2025 from GHS 17.95 billion. EBITDA rose by 43.5 percent to GHS 14.69 billion from GHS 10.24 billion and the EBITDA margin reached 60.1 percent, an uptick of 3.0 percentage points. This was driven by strong revenue growth across core business segments, effective cost management and favourable macroeconomic factors.

CHINA 2 MRT

Vnet to raise USD 138 million in private share placement

Chinese data centre operator Vnet has announced a private placement of 81 million newly issued Class A ordinary shares to certain institutional investors at an offering price of USD 1.7 per placement share (or USD 10.2 per ADS, each representing six Class A ordinary shares). The company expects to close the private placement on or about 3 March.

AFRICA 2 MRT

MTN Group expects strong improvement in profits for 2025

MTN Group said it expects to report strong earnings for 2025, with a net result between ZAR 10.62 and ZAR 11.68 per share for the financial year, compared to a loss of ZAR 5.31 in 2024. Headline EPS is expected to reach ZAR 12.64-12.85, up from ZAR 0.98 the previous year. The mobile operator noted that its larger operations, including MTN Ghana and MTN Nigeria, delivered robust earnings in the 2025 financial year, with improved profitability driven by stronger revenue growth, and there was positive operatio

SINGAPORE 2 MRT

NeraTel returns to pre-tax profit in FY2025 after cost reset

Singapore communications and network solutions provider Nera Telecommunications (NeraTel) has returned to profit before tax in FY2025 and delivered positive EBITDA, supported by stronger second-half execution, disciplined cost management and a resilient order backlog. The group reported revenue of SGD 100.19 million for the year ended 31 December 2025, up 2 percent from FY2024. Second-half revenue rose 9 percent year on year to SGD 55.48 million, reflecting improved momentum across its Network Infrastructur

SINGAPORE 2 MRT

TeleChoice reports 58% profit growth in FY2025

Singapore-based operator TeleChoice International has reported a 58 percent YoY rise in profit after tax to SGD 6.6 million for FY2025, as revenue climbed 36.2 percent to SGD 518 million, supported by improved operating performance across all three business divisions. The group said profit before tax increased 60.1 percent to SGD 9.7 million, driven by higher gross profit contributions from its PCS, ICT and NES units.

THAILAND 1 MRT

True major shareholder CPG sells 10% stake to UBS, local investors

Thai operator True has announced that its major shareholder, Charoen Pokphand Group (CPG), is divesting up to 3.45 billion shares, representing 10 percent of the company's total issued shares. This transaction is being executed in two stages. On 27 February, the first portion was sold to UBS AG London Branch (4.49%), CPB Equity (0.21%), and Sribathana (0.01%) at a price based on the market close from the previous day. The remaining 5.3 percent of the shares will be sold to UBS as soon as administrative matt

GREECE 1 MRT

OTE to launch EUR 177 million share buyback programme on 2 March

Hellenic Telecommunications Organization (OTE) will launch a share buyback programme on 2 March. The company has allocated around EUR 177 million for this initiative, which will run until 18 January 2027 at the latest. The final number of shares acquired will depend on share price and liquidity during this period, OTE added.

RUSSIAN FEDERATION 27 FEB

Rostelecom Group's revenues up, net profit down in Q4

Revenues of the Rostelecom Group totaled RUB 270.5 bilion in the fourth quarter of 2025, up by 16 percent year-on-year. OIBDA at the Russian operator grew by 19 percent to RUB 95.3 billion, and the margin reached 35.2 percent, up by 0.9 percentage points. The net profit was RUB 0.2 billion, down from RUB 4.7 billion in October to December 2024. 

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Background

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