• Major Italian telcos strike 5G RAN sharing deal
• Direct-to-device services considered for the UK’s front line 
• Veon pumps funds into its fintech unit

In today’s industry news roundup: Telecom Italia and Fastweb + Vodafone plan to share 5G networks covering 60% of Italy’s population; direct-to-device services could play a role in the UK’s Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme; Veon injects $20m into its financial services subsidiary, Mobilink Microfinance Bank; and more!

Telecom Italia (TIM) has struck a preliminary radio access network (RAN) sharing agreement with one of its main national rivals, Fastweb + Vodafone, in an effort to “speed up the rollout of 5G in Italy”, the operators announced. A definitive contract is expected to be signed by the second quarter of this year. The deal, which still needs approval from the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy (MIMIT), the Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) and the Italian Communications Authority (AGCom), “represents an important step forward in the efficient use of existing infrastructure and will enable broader and more sustainable 5G coverage,” according to Telecom Italia. Swisscom, the parent company of Fastweb + Vodafone, the country’s largest mobile operator by customer numbers that was formed a year ago, noted in its announcement about the agreement that the networks included in the deal will cover about 60% of the country’s population (which totals some 59 million) and be focused on deployments in towns with fewer than 35,000 inhabitants. “Each operator will be responsible for network development in 10 regions leading to a network of approximately 15,500 sites per operator by the end of 2028,” noted Swisscom. There’s no indication as yet as to how much capex each operator will save if their planned collaboration gets regulatory approval.  

The UK Space Agency (UKSA) is working with the country’s Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme (ESMCP) to seek industry input on integrating direct-to-device (D2D) satellite services into the national Emergency Services Network (ESN). The ESN, which is set to replace the UK’s Airwave TETRA-based radio services with a modern mobile network provided by BT’s EE, has been beset by delays.  Now, following concerns by the ESMCP about so-called ‘not-spots’ in rural and coastal areas, the UKSA has asked interested parties for input on how satellites could be used to plug the gap, ensuring emergency services personnel can stay connected across the UK, according to a report in The Telegraph. This opens the door for several providers, most notably Starlink, which already has an agreement with BT Group to provide broadband services to UK customers. In 2024, BT Group signed a new £1.29bn contract with the Home Office to provide mobile services for the ESN until 2031. The new contract, which built on the original 2015 agreement, also saw BT take management responsibility and provide coverage services for the Home Office’s Air-to-Ground (A2G) network, its Extended Area Services (EAS) sites, London Underground and specific road and rail tunnels. Last year, the UK also agreed a deal with IBM to deliver user services for the ESN. IBM replaced Motorola, which had agreed the initial services contract in 2015, prior to its acquisition of Airwave Solutions in 2015.

Veon Group has announced a $20m investment into its financial services subsidiary, Mobilink Microfinance Bank, as part of its recently announced push into Pakistan. The $20m figure is in addition to Veon’s previous $15m investment that was announced in January 2025, with the aim of accelerating Mobilink’s digital Islamic banking expansion, according to a tweet from Aamir Hafeez Ibrahim, CEO of Veon’s Pakistani mobile operation, Jazz. Veon expanded Mobilink’s shariah-compliant finance offerings into Pakistan in December, having secured a licence from the country’s State Bank earlier in the year. It initially launched with $415m of investment and opened its first branch in Karachi at the end of 2025. Haaris Mahmood Chaudhary, president and CEO of Mobilink Bank, said the investment will enable the bank to build out its shariah-compliant Islamic banking offerings and help small businesses to “formalise cash flows, access regulated credit and build long-term financial resilience”. Veon also offers digital financial services in Kazakhstan Uzbekistan, through Simply and Beepul, respectively.

A reminder today that private wireless networks are not all about 5G… Wifinity, a UK company that designs, builds and manages “mission-critical connectivity infrastructure network solutions for complex, multi-site, and multi-tenant environments”, such as leisure facilities, student accommodation, army barracks and more, using Wi-Fi technology, has been acquired by Arcus Infrastructure Partners via its Arcus European Infrastructure Fund 3 SCSp (AEIF3) for an undisclosed sum. For further details, see this announcement. 

– The staff, TelecomTV