Kalaam Telecom acquires Kuwaiti ISP leader Zajil Telecom to create $100m technology solutions company to drive GCC digital transformation

The acquisition expands Kalaam’s capabilities and network to include offices in the UAE to support the growing digital economy within the region and internationally

Dubai, UAE: Kalaam Telecom, Bahrain’s leading technology solutions provider, has announced the acquisition of Zajil International Telecom Co. (KSCC), one of Kuwait’s longest-established ISP and ICT services companies, with the aim of creating a regional powerhouse which will drive digital transformation in the GCC region and beyond.

The acquisition will create a combined entity with revenue of US$100 million, with data centers in five countries, network Point of Presence (PoPs) in 25 countries, and a subsea and land cable network that connects three continents. Kalaam will be among the top three ISPs in the GCC and will be the only operator with an ISP licence for Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

Given UAE’s position as a regional technology hub and with Kalaam’s stronger team presence in UAE, Kalaam aims to create strong partnerships with system integrators (SIs) and managed security service providers (MSSPs) to better service enterprise customers in the country as well as the wider GCC region.

Nezar Al Saie, Chairman of Kalaam Telecom, said: “Kalaam’s acquisition of Zajil Telecom is a testament to our ambitious, resilient growth strategy. Despite the economic challenges that hit the world and our region, Kalaam has sustained its robust organic and acquisition-led expansion plans. We are delighted to acquire Zajil, which is hailed as the leading ISP in Kuwait with a solid customer portfolio, encompassing some of the most prominent enterprises and government institutions. We are also proud of the expansion of Kalaam Telecom shareholders, with the addition of some of the most prominent businessmen in the Gulf region. The acquisition empowers Kalaam to become one of the three largest independent ISPs in the Middle East, and the only one with regional presence in different countries.

“This acquisition is underpinned by our continuous efforts to strengthen our innovative enterprise solutions by investing heavily in cementing our regional digital infrastructure. With the integration of Zajil Telecom into our wider group, Kalaam is boosting its reliable, premium offering of disruptive industry technologies to its current and prospect customers,” he added.

“The acquisition of Zajil empowers Kalaam Group to become a full stack one-stop, end-to-end solutions provider of choice for the local & regional enterprise market and the international wholesale business. Kalaam has impressively evolved from being a pure ISP to become a 360-degree digital solutions provider, building a full stack Industry customized ecosystem of ICT solutions, including Cloud, Security, Data Center, IOT, AI and Unified communications for its customers. With its terrestrial fiber cable system,KNOT (which spans 1,400 km across GCC), and Zajil’s consortium ownership in EIG (Europe India Gateway,a 15,000 KM international fiber optic submarine cable system that links 12 countries across three continents., the combined group will be able to offer redundant, secure and fast access to its Enterprise & Wholesale customers, for reaching their applications, data , workloads and other services on the Cloud or for connecting their regional & international branches. The combined network will provide footprint in 25 countries in MENA, Europe, US and Asia with 53 fully owned Point of Presence (PoPs) to deliver all the product lines, and industry-specific solutions for the banking, oil & gas, retail, telecoms and transportation sectors.” said Veer Passi, CEO, Kalaam Telecom.

“Kalaam Telecom will be uniquely positioned with the acquisition of Zajil as the clear market leader, expanding its enterprise solutions across the MENA region, Europe, US and Asia. The combination of services and infrastructure brought together by the Zajil and Kalaam Telecom merger will result in the delivery of more advanced and industry-specific solutions for local, regional and international corporates, businesses and individual customers alike,” said Mohammad Al-Tuwaijri, Chairman, Zajil Telecom.   

“This acquisition is consistent with Kalaam’s history of adding to its portfolio high quality companies and consolidating regional ISPs into one strong, efficient, scalable and, profitable platform. Kalaam’s two-pronged growth strategy of organic and acquisition-led expansion has enabled it to build a unique regional telecom platform focusing on the regionally underserved enterprise market. This successful strategy has created significant value for all its stakeholders,” said Rabih I. Khoury, Managing Partner of MEVP, one of the leading technology VC asset managers in MENA.

“Corporate customers today require innovative solutions that attend to their continuously evolving business needs, which is where a focused telecom solution provider such as Kalaam comes into play to respond quickly to enterprises with a fully tailored approach. Kalaam’s presence in multiple countries makes it uniquely situated to be the one stop digital solutions provider and a preferred partner to regional and international customers,” said Javier Alvarez, Co-Founder & Managing Director of Delta Partners, the leading telecom management consultancy firm.

Kalaam has grown rapidly, from a privately-owned local operator to become a regional telecom leader serving a broad base of enterprise, wholesale and channel customers. The technology solutions provider serves regional and international enterprise markets, offering cutting edge internet, data, voice, cloud and digital solutions, with offices in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and the UK.

Zajil Telecom was the first ISP in Kuwait and has over 30 years of experience in information and communications technology solutions across MENA. The company is a regional leader in MPLS solutions, with a global customer base and network.

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Kalaam Telecom

Kalaam Telecom (Kalaam) is a leading provider of ICT services and connectivity solutions, serving SME’s, enterprise, telecoms carriers and wholesale telecoms businesses in the GCC.

Headquartered in Bahrain, and with offices in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Jordan, and UK, Kalaam has pioneered ISP solutions, connectivity and digital transformation in the GCC for over 16 years. Kalaam provides a portfolio of cutting-edge digital solutions that are tailored to the needs of customers of all sizes in key markets and verticals across the region, including BFSI, education, government, hospitality, healthcare, retail and more.

Following the acquisition of Zajil, the combined entity operates a network of 53 Points of Presence (PoPs) across 25 countries. Kalaam’s fully owned terrestrial cable system, Kalaam Network Optical Transit (KNOT), which is spanning Kuwait, Bahrain, KSA, UAE and Qatar; is now coupled with consortium ownership in undersea cable Europe-India Gateway (EIG), a 15,000km international fiber-optic submarine cable system covering 12 countries from India and the Middle East to Europe. Through this extensive network, Kalaam is uniquely placed to serve international and regional telecom carriers and enterprises.

Zajil International Telecom Company K.S.C.C

Zajil International Telecom Company K.S.C.C (Zajil) is a leading ICT service provider in the MENA region. Established in the State of Kuwait since 1991, Zajil is Kuwait’s first ISP and the region's leading MPLS Service Provider.

Zajil has proudly achieved the CPN Certificate (Cisco Powered Network) from Cisco, ISO 9001:2000 certification and ISO 27001:2005 ISMS certification.

Zajil’s data center in Kuwait is one of the most advanced data centers in the country providing hosting, collocation, and cloud services to major corporate clients from different sectors including Banking & Financial Services, Oil & Gas, Government, Retail, Telecommunications, and Transportation.

Zajil has been at the forefront of introducing new services to its customers, it is one of the leading service providers in the ICT industry, providing end-to-end connectivity, cloud and managed services to its customers.

© Press Release 2021