Ukraine's Kyivstar lifts outlook again on strong earnings and digital momentum

By Leo Marchandon and Gianluca Lo Nostro

July 31 (Reuters) - Ukraine's largest mobile operator Kyivstar on Friday raised its financial outlook for the second time this year, building on a sustained momentum in its core telecoms and rapidly expanding digital businesses despite the continuing war.

The Nasdaq-listed company now targets 2026 revenue growth of between 14% and 16% in U.S. dollars, up from a prior range of 11% to 14%. Core profit is also expected to rise between 9% and 12%, instead of the earlier forecast of 7% to 10%.

CEO Oleksandr Komarov said the upgrade reflected a good broad-based performance, as Kyivstar's earlier forecasts had been deliberately cautious given the operating conditions in Ukraine.

"All the elements played in line with expectations or slightly better," Komarov told Reuters.

The company's quarterly revenue grew 27% in local currency, supported by double-digit percentage growth in telecoms and a sharp acceleration in digital services, where local-currency revenue jumped nearly 95%, Komarov said.

He said the digital services growth reflected both organic expansion and acquisitions, although the contribution from acquired businesses would gradually diminish in year-on-year comparisons.

Kyivstar has expanded beyond mobile services through investments in areas including television, ride-hailing, healthcare and energy. Digital services accounted for almost 22% of group revenue in the quarter, with Komarov noting e-commerce and financial services remained strategic gaps in Kyivstar's broader ecosystem.

Kyivstar TV benefited from the live broadcast of a major Usyk boxing fight, Komarov said, while ride-hailing unit Uklon recorded around 50% growth compared to last year.

Uklon has launched a pilot bus service on two international routes using eight buses and is pursuing the acquisition of a scooter company that would extend its operations to 11 cities, he added.

Kyivstar said it had 21.8 million mobile subscribers in Ukraine as of June 30. Second-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation grew 13.7% to $188 million.

(Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro and Leo Marchandon in Gdansk; Editing by Matt Scuffham and Milla Nissi-Prussak)