Beeline Kazakhstan's EBITDA fell 17.5% in tenge in the second quarter as revenue rose 3.8%

Two numbers from VEON's Kazakh unit: revenue up 3.8 per cent in tenge in the second quarter of 2026, to KZT 107.4 billion, and EBITDA down 17.5 per cent, to KZT 42.3 billion. The figures come from the group's second-quarter presentation. In dollars, the reporting currency, Kazakh revenue rose 12.2 per cent to $226 million and EBITDA fell 10.9 per cent to $89 million, a margin of 39.4 per cent.

The group as a whole grew faster: revenue rose 17.0 per cent to $1,271 million and EBITDA 6.2 per cent to $552 million, and VEON raised its 2026 revenue growth outlook to 15 to 18 per cent, according to its results release.

Uzbekistan moved the other way on profit. Revenue rose 5.3 per cent in local currency to UZS 1,009 billion and EBITDA 2.3 per cent to UZS 372 billion, or $84 million and $31 million, with a margin the presentation gives as 36.8 per cent.

The first half, from the filing

The six-month segment table in VEON's interim report on Form 6-K gives the same direction over a longer period, in US dollars:

Six months to 30 June	Kazakhstan 2026	Kazakhstan 2025	Uzbekistan 2026	Uzbekistan 2025
Total revenue, $ million	438	389	166	147
Adjusted EBITDA, $ million	180	195	61	56
Margin, per cent (calculated)	41.1	50.1	36.7	38.1

Kazakh revenue rose 12.6 per cent in dollars and adjusted EBITDA fell 7.5 per cent, or 12.3 per cent in local currency, the filing says; the rounded figures in the table give 7.7 per cent. The margins in the last row are Corridor Signal's division of EBITDA by revenue; VEON does not print them for the half. On that arithmetic the Kazakh margin fell by nine percentage points in a year, while Uzbekistan's slipped by about one and a half.

What VEON says caused it

The filing attributes the Kazakh decline in local currency mainly to higher service costs, commercial costs, personnel costs and marketing spend, and at group level cites "weaker gross margin and higher personnel costs in Kazakhstan". It says the fall in local-currency ARPU in Kazakhstan was driven mainly by lower mobile service revenue usage. The presentation's Kazakhstan slide speaks of macroeconomic and competitive headwinds in its heading and gives no further explanation.

In Uzbekistan the filing credits repricing, higher digital financial services revenue and higher device sales for revenue growth, partly offset at EBITDA level by personnel and service costs. It links the change in its customer numbers there to "increased competition in the market and focus on high-value customer retention".

Digital share and 4G

Digital revenue was 20.0 per cent of the Kazakh total in the quarter, KZT 21.5 billion, up 26.8 per cent, and 15.3 per cent of the Uzbek total, UZS 155 billion, up 21.0 per cent, the presentation shows. It counts 8.7 million three-month active 4G users in Kazakhstan, a penetration of 74.7 per cent, and 5.6 million in Uzbekistan, or 72.7 per cent. Capital expenditure over the last twelve months was 21.0 and 20.7 per cent of revenue. The presentation does not give total mobile subscribers for either country.

What the third quarter adds

VEON will report results for the quarter to 30 September on 6 November and hold a Capital Markets Day on 16 November, according to its announcement. The quarter includes the Kazakh launch of Starlink's satellite-to-mobile service on 29 September, which Corridor Signal reported, but not the purchase of Perfectum in Uzbekistan, which was cleared with conditions after the quarter ended. Beeline's licences in both countries list no 5G, according to VEON's annual report in the documents reviewed.