Digilife Vietnam Digital Services Co., Ltd, a fintech company member of VNPAY, was licensed to establish a mobile virtual network across the country.

Vietnam has four mobile virtual network operators. Photo: dienmayxanh.com

This is the fourth mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in Vietnam. Digilife must strictly comply with the terms of the method of service provision, a form of payment of charges, connection and lease of channels, telecommunications resources, charges, quality of service, deployment of licenses, and other obligations.

A mobile virtual network operator is a wireless communications services provider that does not own the wireless network infrastructure over which it provides services to its customers. An MVNO enters into a business agreement with a mobile network operator to obtain bulk access to network services at wholesale rates, then sets retail prices independently.

In April 2019, Indochina Telecom is the first MVNO in Vietnam, with the name Itel. After more than two years of operation, it has reached nearly three million subscribers by December 2021. 

In June 2020, Reddi, operated by Mobicast, became the second MVNO in Vietnam, using the mobile phone infrastructure of the State-owned Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT). However, last year, it was purchased by Sherpa Company Limited, a subsidiary of Masan Group Corporation, which will help the group digitalize its platforms and build unified off-to-online products and services solutions. 

The third virtual mobile network called Local, was developed by ASIM Telecom, and launched in early May 2021. It provides 4G super data SIM products from MobiFone.

Recently, FPT Digital Retail JSC also planned to deploy a mobile virtual network business model in Vietnam in the 2022 general meeting of shareholders.

According to Fortune Business Insights, the MVNO market is projected to grow from U$72.5 billion in 2021 to $123.4 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.9% during the 2021-2028 period.