Kyivstar: New Ventures After Going Public
Following its debut on the Nasdaq stock exchange, Kyivstar has significantly increased its market capitalization. The Ukrainian telecom operator shows positive results despite the challenges posed by the war and geopolitical tensions.
In an interview with Mind, the company's president, Oleksandr Komarov, stated that as of October 20, the market capitalization of Kyivstar has risen to $3.13 billion, indicating a successful listing.
Prior to the full-scale invasion, the company struck a deal with the American SPAC Cohen Circle Acquisition Corp., valuing Kyivstar at $2.3 billion. Currently, the stock price fluctuates but exceeds initial forecasts, trading around $12.
"If we discuss the semi-annual results, there are several trends. Excluding the impact of the customer loyalty program we implemented after the cyberattack in December 2023, our organic growth is 18% year-over-year. As for pre-tax profit, Kyivstar has seen a 14% increase. However, we have a long-term trend of decreasing profitability," said the CEO of Kyivstar.
He noted that operational costs and expenses related to the war have risen significantly. "If we add the acquired Uklon service, which we started consolidating from the second quarter of 2025, our revenue grew by 23% and pre-tax profit by 17%" he added.
When asked whether the presence of sanctioned Russian investor Mikhail Fridman, who indirectly owns nearly 38% of the company, affects stock prices, Oleksandr Komarov replied: "This has no impact on our stock quotes. All restrictions were lifted in December 2024, and that history is behind us. To become a public company, you must comply with high compliance standards."
The head of Ukraine's largest mobile operator also outlined three potential directions for inorganic growth in the company's strategy.
Kyivstar is looking into assets related to its core telecom business, currently comprising two types of assets: infrastructure (e.g., Ukrainian Tower Company) and operators providing fixed internet services to households.
"Inorganic growth will help us transform Kyivstar from a telecom operator to a digital service provider with a telecom license. We are eager to expand our presence in mobility, as well as explore e-commerce, fintech, and digital advertising verticals," summarized Oleksandr Komarov.
As previously reported, Kyivstar is considering investing in the largest Ukrainian cloud solutions provider, GigaCloud. The mobile operator has already applied to the Antimonopoly Committee to acquire an 80% stake in GigaCloud.
In the first half of 2025, Kyivstar increased its revenue by 36.1% year-on-year to UAH 22.6 billion. In the second quarter, revenue reached UAH 11.9 billion, up 25.8% from the second quarter of 2024.
