Circles Global
Circles Global is a Singapore-based, AI-native SaaS provider founded in 2014 that enables telecommunications operators to launch, operate, and scale digital telco brands on a cloud-native, unified BSS/OSS platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersSingapore, Singapore
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Circles Global does
Circles Global is a Singapore-headquartered, AI-native SaaS provider founded in 2014 that enables telecommunications operators to transform from traditional telcos into digital 'techcos.' The company's cloud-native platform consolidates legacy BSS/OSS, CRM, and network data into a unified architecture and serves as the technology foundation for operators to launch, operate, and scale fully digital telco brands. Core platform components include the Multi-AI Agent Fabric, Innovation Engine (Xplore), Digital Quotient Assessment, Digital Advisory Support Services (DASS), and AI assistants (Circles AI, povo AI), all built on TM Forum ODA and Open API standards. The platform is validated through Tier-1 brownfield transformations (Telkomsel Indonesia) and digital brand launches including KDDI's povo (Japan), e&'s onic (Middle East), AT&T Mexico's Wim, and PTCL's onic (Pakistan). Circles also operates its own MVNO, Circles Life, in Singapore, providing firsthand operator experience that feeds product development.
The company generates revenue through three streams: SaaS platform subscriptions (primary, recurring), Professional Services (implementation, customization, consulting), and On-Premise Software Licenses. Pricing is quote-based and structured through multi-year Statements of Work and Purchase Orders with telecom operators, with fees typically accruing after Go-Live. Distribution is exclusively direct enterprise sales targeting Tier-1 global carriers, with go-to-market heavily oriented around long-cycle strategic partnerships, joint ventures for digital brand creation (e.g., e& onic, PTCL onic), and technology integrations (Huawei, Oracle Communications). The company employs 700+ people across operations in 15 countries spanning 6 continents, and it has a wholly owned subsidiary base including Liberty Wireless Pte Ltd (Singapore) and Circles Australia Pty Limited. Circles acquired Pareteum in 2022 to bolster its MVNE capabilities.
The customer base consists almost entirely of large Tier-1 telecom operators across Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, Europe, and North America, including KDDI, Telkomsel, e& International, AT&T Mexico, PTCL, XL Axiata, Proximus, Telenet, Vodacom, and Mobicom. Reported client outcomes include 7x revenue growth and 3x subscriber growth for the onic brand in the Middle East, greater than 30% engagement uplift for KDDI Digital Life using the Innovation Engine, and 40+ feature enhancements delivered to partner brands. The company is privately held with no disclosed venture or private equity funding rounds in the available data, and it is led by co-founders Rameez Ansar (CEO) and Adeel Najam.
Circles Global firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Circles Global
- Legal name
- Circles Global
- Website
- https://circles.co
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Circles Global is a Singapore-based, AI-native SaaS provider founded in 2014 that enables telecommunications operators to launch, operate, and scale digital telco brands on a cloud-native, unified BSS/OSS platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Circles Global industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Telecom BSS/OSS Software
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)
- SIC
- Services-Telephone Interconnect Systems (7385)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Telco Cloud & Edge for NaaS (Distributed Cloud, MEC, Edge CNFs) (HDAIAIAE)
Keywords
Where Circles Global is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Singapore
- HQ country
- Singapore
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Circles Global business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- SaaS Platform Subscription: Circles generates primary revenue through SaaS platform subscriptions paid by telecom operators for access to their AI-native digital telco transformation platform. Fees are contracted through Statements of Work (SOW) and Purchase Orders (PO) with operators.
- Professional Services: Implementation, customization, and consulting services provided alongside the SaaS platform, including Digital Advisory Support Services (DASS) consultants who provide on-demand expertise and accelerate transformation journeys.
- On-Premise Software License: Software licenses for on-premise deployment where operators prefer to host software internally rather than using SaaS, including rights to reproduce, modify, and use software under intellectual property rights.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | SaaS subscription model - fees accrue after Go-Live based on contracted scope |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Professional Services - scoped by SOW with defined deliverables and timelines |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | On-Premise Software - license rights granted through PO |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels9 records
Circles Global product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Circles Global sells a cloud-native, AI-enabled SaaS platform that enables telecommunications operators to build, operate, and launch digital telco brands. The platform consolidates legacy BSS/OSS systems into a unified architecture with an embedded Multi-AI Agent Fabric and unified data layer, and is delivered via SaaS subscriptions, on-premise software licenses, or professional services. It also operates joint ventures with operators (e.g., onic with e& and PTCL) to co-create digital telco brands.
Product overview
Circles Global offers a SaaS-powered telco transformation platform with a modular architecture. The core is a cloud-native, AI-enabled SaaS platform that enables telecommunications operators to build, operate, and launch well-loved digital telco brands. It integrates embedded AI capabilities (Multi-AI Agent Fabric, Circles AI/povo AI assistants) and is supported by add-on modules including Innovation Engine (rapid service development), Xplore (innovation sandbox), Xtend, Digital Quotient Assessment, AI Capabilities, Main Brand Evolution, Sub-Brand Creation and Transformation, A New Telco for Any Industry, and Digital Advisory Support Services (DASS). The platform consolidates legacy BSS/OSS systems into a unified architecture, enabling operators like KDDI, Telkomsel, e&, and AT&T Mexico to serve millions of users across 15 countries.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Circles AI: AI-powered platform enabling anticipatory customer experiences within the telco app, potentially turning telco apps into AI-powered super apps.
- povo AI
Products and services
- SaaS Platform for Telcos Cloud-native, AI-enabled SaaS platform enabling telecommunications operators to build, operate, and launch digital telco brands. Consolidates legacy BSS/OSS systems into a unified architecture supporting real-time monetization, automation and customer management across multiple brands and geographies.
- On-Premise Software License Perpetual software license granting operators rights to reproduce, modify and use Circles' software under Vendor intellectual property, deployed on the operator's own infrastructure for telco digital transformation. Fees and scope are defined in the applicable Purchase Order.
- Professional Services Implementation, customization and consulting services provided alongside the SaaS platform, including Digital Advisory Support Services (DASS) consultants who deliver on-demand telco AI expertise and accelerate operator transformation journeys. Services are scoped through Statements of Work with defined deliverables.
- Digital Quotient (DQ) Assessment Diagnostic assessment tool benchmarking an organization's digital maturity against industry standards, providing tailored insights and a recommended path to becoming an Ideal Digital Mobile Operator (DMO). Available as a self-serve interactive quiz.
Quantifiable outcome
- 7x revenue growth achieved by onic digital brand in Middle East
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Circles Global
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Circles Global technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability9 records
Feature7 records
Circles Global partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, flagship, core and champion.
- HuaweistrategicStrategic collaboration agreement to develop AI-native digital telecom solutions globally. The partnership focuses on integrating Huawei's network and cloud capabilities with Circles' SaaS platform to enhance real-time monetization, automation, and customer management for operators worldwide.
- by.U by TelkomselflagshipLaunch of cloud-native SaaS platform for large-scale digital transformation of telecommunications operators in legacy environments. Deployment represents one of the most complex Tier-1 brownfield transformation programs, consolidating multiple legacy systems into a unified platform while serving millions of active users.
- HCLTechcoreJoint TM Forum Catalyst initiative (Axiom AI-Native Experience Intelligence and Open Monetization) focusing on multi-AI agent correlating customer experience, intelligence and monetization with autonomous network operations.
- GreySkiescoreJoint TM Forum Catalyst initiative collaborator on AI-native telecom solutions for correlating customer experience, operational intelligence and monetization with autonomous network operations.
- TM ForumcoreProud member of TM Forum. Circles participates in Catalyst initiatives and leverages TM Forum ODA and Open APIs for solution development and standardization.
- Oracle CommunicationsstrategicTechnology partnership where Circles is singular in the industry in taking the same tech stack, extending it to make it natively digital, and carrying it rapidly to multiple brands to take them to market digitally.
- KDDI CorporationflagshipFlagship partner for digital telco brand creation. Circles enabled KDDI to launch Japan's first digital 5G telco brand (povo). KDDI Digital Life achieved >30% engagement increase with Circles' Innovation Engine.
- e& InternationalflagshipJoint venture partner in Middle East for onic digital brand. The partnership achieved 7x revenue growth and 3x subscriber growth. Onic was highlighted in PTCL's FY2024 Financial Results as revolutionizing telecom industry.
- AT&T MexicostrategicPartnership for Wim digital brand providing streamlined and user-centric mobile experience aligned with digital-first consumer expectations.
- PTCLflagshipJoint venture partner in Pakistan for onic digital brand transformation, with e& and Circles. onic was recognized in PTCL's FY2024 Financial Results as revolutionizing the telecom industry.
- XL AxiatastrategicPartnership for digital brand transformation and reimagining customer experiences in Indonesia, with Circles' expertise in pioneering customer-first digital telco brands.
- TELUSchampionChampion operator validating TM Forum Catalyst initiative, demonstrating how CSPs can operationalize AI safely at scale.
- OrangechampionChampion operator validating TM Forum Catalyst initiative, demonstrating how CSPs can operationalize AI safely at scale.
- Circles LifechampionChampion operator validating TM Forum Catalyst initiative. Circles Life won Fast Mode 2025 Award for Best Innovation in Customer Experience.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Circles Global competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Oracle Communications:
- Amdocs: Amdocs is a long-established telecom software vendor offering BSS, OSS, network optimization and digital transformation suites to global CSPs. It directly competes with Circles in the BSS/OSS modernization market but serves a broader portfolio of telecom software categories beyond Circles' focused digital-brand and AI-agent stack.
Direct peers
- Netcracker Technology: Netcracker provides BSS/OSS and digital transformation platforms for telecom operators globally, including cloud-native digital BSS stacks aimed at CSP modernization. It is one of the closest direct comparables to Circles in target customer (Tier-1 telcos), product category (BSS/OSS suites) and go-to-market (large operator engagements).
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Circles Global social profiles
Digital presenceCircles Global financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Circles Global leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Circles Global subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Circles Global funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Circles Global M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A2 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Circles Global
What does Circles Global do?
Circles Global sells a cloud-native, AI-enabled SaaS platform that enables telecommunications operators to build, operate, and launch digital telco brands. The platform consolidates legacy BSS/OSS systems into a unified architecture with an embedded Multi-AI Agent Fabric and unified data layer, and is delivered via SaaS subscriptions, on-premise software licenses, or professional services. It also operates joint ventures with operators (e.g., onic with e& and PTCL) to co-create digital telco brands.
Is Circles Global a public or private company?
Circles Global is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Circles Global founded?
Circles Global was founded in 2014. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Circles Global based?
Circles Global is headquartered in Singapore, Singapore, in the Asia region.
How does Circles Global make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. SaaS Platform Subscription is the primary driver. The others are professional Services and on-Premise Software License.
Who are Circles Global's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Oracle Communications and Amdocs. Netcracker Technology is listed as a direct peer.
Does Circles Global have an API?
No public API is recorded for Circles Global.
What industry is Circles Global in?
Circles Global's product category is Telecom BSS/OSS Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAIAIAE, Telco Cloud & Edge for NaaS (Distributed Cloud, MEC, Edge CNFs). Its NAICS code is 518 and its SIC code is 7385.