RETN

What RETN does

RETN is an independent international telecommunications carrier that operates a privately-owned DWDM fiber-optic network spanning more than 142,000 km across Europe and Asia, delivering IP transit (AS9002), wavelength capacity, Ethernet/VPN, remote IX peering, cloud connectivity, colocation, and DDoS protection to ISPs, CDNs, content providers, enterprises, and financial institutions. The network runs on Infinera and Ciena optical platforms with a Juniper MX10k IP/MPLS core, supports 125.4 Tbps of capacity across 1,010+ Points of Presence in 45+ territories, and is differentiated by the TRANSKZ terrestrial corridor linking Frankfurt to Hong Kong (15,000 km, 140.83 ms RTT, measured uptime above 99.99%). Founded in London in 2003 by two Russian engineers who had been unable to source high-quality IP transit for their own ISP, RETN has grown to 160+ employees across 17 offices and serves 1,500+ clients; it holds ISO 27001:2022, PCI DSS Level 1, and ISO 14001:2015 certifications at its Riga Deglava DC facility.

The company monetizes almost entirely through recurring subscription contracts priced on a quote basis, supplemented by IXP reseller relationships (LINX Top Reseller for both European and North American Networks, DE-CIX Premium Partner, AMS-IX Best Performing Partner) and colocation partnerships across 420+ data centers. Distribution combines direct enterprise sales teams in regional offices, a self-serve customer portal, and channel resale; 2024-2026 brought product launches including an AI-powered DDoS platform, advanced IPv6 rollout, and new low-latency routes such as Milan-Zurich, while 2026 added first US PoPs in Miami and Ashburn, a Barcelona PoP on the 2Africa cable, and Baltic/Central European fiber expansions (Tallinn-Cēsis, Kaunas-Bialystok). Ownership remains private and founder-/management-controlled with no disclosed external funding rounds, and the M&A record is limited to the 2017-2019 acquisition of Latvian fiber operator OPTRON SIA.

Name

RETN

Legal name

RETN NETWORKS LTD

Website

https://retn.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

RETN is an independent international telecommunications carrier operating a privately-owned 142,000+ km DWDM fiber network across Europe and Asia, providing IP transit, capacity, remote IX, cloud connectivity, and DDoS protection to 1,500+ ISPs, enterprises, and content providers across 45+ territories.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wholesale Telecommunications Network Services

NAICS

Wired Telecommunications Carriers (517111), Wired and Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite) (51711), Wired and Wireless Telecommunications (except Satellite) (5171)

SIC

Communications Services, Nec (4899)

akta.pro primary industry

IP Transit & Internet Backbone (Tier-1/2, peering, DIA) (HDAIAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Backbone & Long-Haul Transport (IP/MPLS, Optical/Wavelength) (HDABALAH), Subsea & Terrestrial Backhaul to Data Centers and Cloud On-Ramps (IX/DC Interconnect) (HDAIALAJ), Wholesale Wavelength, Spectrum & Dark Fiber Providers (IRU/Leases) (HDAIALAI), Carrier Ethernet & Wavelength Wholesale (E-Line/E-LAN, OTN, lambda) (HDAIAEAB)

Keywords

• IP transit services
• DWDM wavelength capacity
• Remote peering IX
• Cloud connectivity
• Wholesale network services

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices16 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. IP Transit: Provides connectivity to the Global Internet from multiple locations worldwide through AS9002. Combines peering relationships with premium upstream providers for redundancy.
2. Capacity Services: Layer 1 transport service using wavelengths (DWDM) for point-to-point data transmission. Available speeds from 1Gbps to 800Gbps with Ethernet, SDH, or OTN presentation.
3. Cloud Connect: Dedicated private connections to major cloud providers (AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Oracle, etc.) up to 100G capacity.
4. Remote IX: Remote access to major Internet Exchanges (AMS-IX, DE-CIX, LINX, etc.) from any RETN PoP worldwide.
5. Colocation: Colocation services at over 420+ data centers worldwide with direct connectivity to RETN network.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

RETN sells wholesale and enterprise connectivity services on its privately-owned Eurasian fiber-optic backbone, including IP Transit (Internet), Layer 1 DWDM Capacity wavelengths, Ethernet and L2/L3 VPN services, Remote IX remote peering to major internet exchanges, Colocation in 420+ data centres, Cloud Connect private links to hyperscalers, and an AI-augmented DDoS Protection suite. These connectivity products are packaged into solutions such as Managed Global Private Network, BGP Solutions, One Port, the TRANSKZ Europe-Asia corridor, and Cyber Security, sold to ISPs, CDNs, content providers, financial institutions, and global enterprises.

Product overview

RETN operates a privately-owned Eurasian network infrastructure spanning over 142,000 km across 45 territories with 1,010+ Points of Presence and 125.4 Tbps IP/MPLS network capacity. The product portfolio is organized as a platform-plus-modules architecture centered on core connectivity services. The foundation consists of physical and network-layer services: Capacity (DWDM wavelength transport), Internet (IP Transit/DIA), Ethernet & VPN (L2/L3 VPN services), Remote IX (remote peering), Colocation (420+ data centers), Cloud Connect (private cloud connections), DDoS Protection, and Flex IX (combining Remote IX with IP Transit). These are complemented by higher-level solutions including Managed Global Private Network (enterprise connectivity), BGP Solutions (wholesale routing tools), One Port (unified single-port access), TRANSKZ (Europe-Asia terrestrial DWDM corridor), and Cyber Security services. The network leverages DWDM technology from Infinera and Ciena, and IP/MPLS platforms from Juniper. The company is headquartered in London with 17 offices globally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• TRANSKZ: Innovative express gateway linking Europe to Asia on a single, homogenous, terrestrial, DWDM system from a single network provider. It is fully protected connecting Europe to Asia with 15,000km of fiber from Frankfurt to Hong Kong and a 140.83ms round trip delay time.

Products and services

• Capacity

Quantifiable outcome

• Network capacity up to 125.4 Tbps on owned DWDM infrastructure
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration24 records

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• BBIXcoreTechnology or Integration · 5 December 2025Partnership expanded to Hong Kong and Singapore, building on existing collaboration in Japan. Utilizes RETN's Flex IX solution to provide new peering opportunities for customers across Asia.
• AMS-IXcoreTechnology or IntegrationAmsterdam Internet Exchange partnership. RETN is recognized as Best Performing Partner for remote peering services.
• DE-CIXcoreTechnology or IntegrationDeutschland Commercial Internet Exchange partnership. RETN is a Premium Partner for IX access services.
• LINXcoreTechnology or IntegrationLondon Internet Exchange partnership. RETN holds Top Reseller status for both European and North American Networks at LINX.
• AWScoreTechnology or IntegrationAmazon Web Services connectivity via Cloud Connect for dedicated private connections to AWS.
• Google CloudcoreTechnology or IntegrationDirect off-ramps to Google Cloud via Cloud Connect service.
• Microsoft AzurecoreTechnology or IntegrationAzure connectivity via Cloud Connect for private cloud access.
• Oracle CloudcoreTechnology or IntegrationDirect off-ramps to Oracle Cloud infrastructure.
• InfineracoreTechnology or IntegrationDWDM technology provider for optical transport equipment on core routes.
• CienacoreTechnology or IntegrationOptical networking equipment provider for DWDM systems.
• Juniper NetworkscoreTechnology or IntegrationIP/MPLS platform provider for network infrastructure using Juniper MX10k core.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves16 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Colt Technology Services: Operates the Colt IQ Network across Europe, Asia, and North America with extensive metro fiber and SD-WAN services, directly comparable to RETN's Ethernet/VPN and IP Transit offering for enterprise and wholesale customers.
• GTT Communications: Global Tier-1 IP Transit and SD-WAN operator serving ISPs, CDNs, and enterprises; competes head-to-head with RETN on IP Transit and Ethernet in Europe and transatlantically.
• euNetworks: Western European fiber operator with ~17,000+ km of owned metro and long-haul fiber connecting 53+ cities, offering wavelength, Ethernet, and IP services — a direct regional competitor in Western and Central Europe.
• PCCW Global: International wholesale carrier with subsea and terrestrial assets spanning Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas; competes directly with RETN on trans-Eurasia IP Transit and capacity services.
• Hurricane Electric: Large global IPv6-native IP Transit provider and operator of multiple internet exchanges; competes directly with RETN on IP Transit and Remote IX services.
• Arelion (formerly Telia Carrier): Owns one of the world's largest IP backbones with ~70,000 km and 350+ PoPs, providing IP Transit, Ethernet, Cloud Connect, and wholesale transport across Europe, North America, and Asia — the closest scale-comparable wholesale carrier to RETN.
• Tata Communications: Owns a global subsea and terrestrial network with strong India-Europe corridors; the most direct peer to RETN for Eurasia wholesale and enterprise connectivity.
• Zayo Group: Owns an extensive fiber backbone across North America and Western Europe providing wavelength, Ethernet, IP, and Cloud Connect services; comparable on infrastructure ownership and product mix.

Broad incumbents

• Lumen Technologies: Tier-1 carrier with a large global IP backbone and significant wavelength footprint; competes with RETN on IP Transit, Ethernet, and Cloud Connect across the same customer base, with much deeper US presence.
• NTT Communications (NTT Data / Global IP Network): One of the largest global Tier-1 carriers, operating a worldwide IP backbone and significant subsea capacity; overlaps with RETN's IP Transit and wavelength offerings across enterprise and wholesale segments.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/retnnet
• Facebookfacebook.com/retn.net
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/retn-ltd-

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RETN