“Dominating Abroad: How a Vietnamese Company is Expanding its Empire and Reigniting its Startup Spirit”

Viettel’s Impressive Growth in Overseas Markets

In 2006, Viettel Global ventured into foreign markets when the telecom giants of the world had already established their dominance globally. However, this enterprise successfully carved out its own path and achieved remarkable success with its unique approach to “Go Global.”

Today, Viettel Global has established a strong presence in 10 countries across 3 continents, boasting 90 million customers. The company has secured the top position in terms of market share in 7 of these markets, consistently achieving a ~20% revenue growth rate over 10 consecutive years, outpacing the global industry average by 4 to 5 times. With a valuation of over $10 billion, Viettel Global is among the largest capitalized companies on the Vietnamese stock market.

According to Viettel Global, one of the key drivers behind their impressive growth is their talented workforce. In recent years, the company has selectively sent exceptional individuals overseas, ensuring they possess a combination of capabilities, experience, confidence, and proactiveness.

Viettel Global has consistently focused on delivering the best customer experience in terms of network coverage and speed. The company continues to invest in new technologies, expanding 4G in Africa and deploying 5G in the Americas and Asia. In addition to telecommunications, they have diversified into digital services, including e-wallets, which now contribute to 30% of their 2024 revenue.

The enterprise has also implemented a smart pricing strategy, enhancing both revenue and profitability. They have made significant strides in subscriber growth and recaptured the urban market in Africa. Viettel Global’s management has been meticulous, aggressive, and flexible, helping to overcome challenges and explore new directions.

Mr. Tao Duc Thang, Chairman of Viettel, shared, “Besides economic efficiency, Viettel also considers overseas investment closely tied to political, cultural, social, and national defense tasks, thereby promoting cultural diplomacy, defense diplomacy, and projecting the image of Vietnam and its people internationally. This presents an opportunity to develop competent personnel with knowledge, experience, and courage, not only for Viettel but also for the country as a whole.”

Pioneering the Development of Digital Services

After successfully driving telephone and Internet access, Viettel Global is now recognized for its pioneering role in shaping the digital society in international markets. The company remains agile in seeking new opportunities and development spaces, prioritizing services beyond telecommunications, such as digital finance, digital services, and technology.

In 2024, Viettel Global’s non-telecom revenue grew impressively, reaching $372 million, outpacing the growth rate of telecom services. Notably, their e-wallet service stood out, generating over $102 million in revenue and achieving the highest growth rate among all services, a remarkable 72% increase.

The company has placed emphasis on developing IT solutions and new services, notably the deployment of Super Apps across 100% of their overseas markets. This super app provides digital content services, enhances user experiences, and increases customer satisfaction, creating an environment conducive to introducing new digital services like TV360 and games. This strategic direction aims to expand their development space, with plans to aggressively pursue this path in 2025 and beyond, targeting an annual growth rate of over 40%.

Furthermore, Viettel Global’s foreign markets have successfully transitioned from telcos to techcos, boasting diverse ecosystems of digital products and services built on telecommunications foundations. Moving forward, 5G, AI, Big Data, Cloud, IoT, and cybersecurity will be the key technology areas of focus for Viettel’s invested markets.

Breaking New Ground in the Next Phase

Amid a declining trend in the traditional global telecommunications market, Viettel Global ambitiously aims to sustain a double-digit growth rate over the next five years. This goal presents a formidable challenge and necessitates a well-thought-out and practical strategy.

To achieve this challenging goal, Viettel Global explains that due to varying development characteristics across their investment countries, the primary growth drivers will differ accordingly. In Africa and Haiti, where telecommunications and mobile internet penetration remain low, double-digit annual growth is still attainable, thus making telecommunications and e-wallet services the main growth drivers for the next five years.

In contrast, in Asian and Peruvian markets, where telecommunications and mobile internet have reached saturation, Viettel Global will aggressively expand into digital services and IT solutions, aligning with the economic digitization trajectory and the increasing demand for telecom services from individuals and enterprises.

Additionally, Viettel Global collaborates with enterprises within the corporation to introduce Viettel’s domestic products and services to foreign markets, effectively executing the “go global” strategy and creating synergies for sustainable development.

Alongside deep-rooted development in each country, Viettel Global will expand horizontally by continuing to explore new markets and diversifying investment forms to meet the specific needs and conditions of each market, thereby broadening their growth opportunities. Viettel Global is diligently researching and comprehensively evaluating potential markets with notable growth prospects. They are determined to enter at least one new market in the next five years. As Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoa, CEO of Viettel Global, shared, “Expanding into new markets creates new challenges, but it also fuels development, growth, and rekindles the entrepreneurial spirit.”

In the international arena, Viettel Global’s staff has not only represented the company but also embodied the image of Vietnam and its people in the eyes of the global community.