What SabaFon does

SabaFon (الشركة اليمنية للهاتف النقال – سبأفون), legal name The Yemeni Mobile Telephone Company – SabaFon, is Yemen's first mobile telecommunications operator, founded in 2001 and now headquartered in Aden after relocating from Sana'a in 2020 following the seizure of its prior headquarters by Houthi-aligned forces. The company operates a GSM mobile network across government-controlled ("liberated") areas of Yemen, running on NOKIA radio and core infrastructure that dates back to the original 2001 launch. SabaFon sells a dual-architecture product set — a prepaid system (نظام الدفع المسبق) and a postpaid/billing system (نظام الفوترة) — supported by multiple branded prepaid lines (Super Naba, Super Layali, Yala youth, Belqis women) and an extensive value-added services portfolio that includes social-media bundles (WhatsApp Plus, Facebook Plus, Facebook+Twitter), SabaNet and SuperNet data packages, ringback tones, voicemail, call management, emergency credit, and international roaming.

The company's go-to-market is direct-to-consumer, distributed through 34+ branded service centers across major Yemeni cities (Aden, Sana'a, Mukalla, Ibb, Taiz, Hodeidah, Marib, Al-Bayda, Al-Jawf, Amran, Hajjah, Shabwah, Seiyun, Lahj, Al-Mahrah, and others), authorized scratch-card retailers, USSD self-service (*102# balance, etc.), a 211 customer hotline, and a dedicated corporate sales team serving enterprises and embassies. Revenue mechanics are usage-based prepaid (recharge tiers from 600 to 10,000 YER with validity from 7 to 220 days), recurring postpaid subscriptions (Fotera), recurring data and VAS bundles, and enterprise contracts. The company is undergoing a digital transformation, having signed a five-year partnership with STL (Sterlite Technologies Limited, NSE-listed) to deploy cloud-native billing and OSS/BSS on Microsoft Azure — Phase 1 completed in under 90 days in 2021.

Ownership is private with no public listing, no disclosed external venture or private-equity participation, and no parent company. Leadership consists of Chairman Hamdan Abdullah Hussain Al-Ahmar and CEO Fahed Abdulwahab Thabet Al-Areqi, with Abdulhadi Saeed Hassan Al-Zauori serving as Director General of Engineering. Headcount is reported at 501–1,000. Strategic technology relationships include NOKIA (core/network), STL (cloud billing/CRM), and PROTEI (VAS).

Name

SabaFon

Legal name

The Yemeni Mobile Telephone Company - SabaFon (الشركة اليمنية للهاتف النقال – سبأفون)

Website

https://sabafon.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

SabaFon is Yemen's first and largest mobile telecommunications operator, founded in 2001, providing prepaid and postpaid voice, SMS, data, and VAS services across government-controlled areas of Yemen via NOKIA network infrastructure and STL cloud billing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Aden

HQ country

Yemen

HQ region

Middle East

Offices18 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Prepaid Airtime Credit: Revenue from prepaid scratch cards and electronic recharge across multiple price points (600-10,000 YER) with varying validity periods. Primary revenue stream for mass market consumers.
2. Postpaid Billing (Fotera): Monthly billed voice and data services for postpaid customers with reduced call rates compared to prepaid. Revenue collected monthly from subscribers.
3. Data and Internet Packages: Various data packages including SabaNet internet bundles, social media packages (WhatsApp, Facebook+Twitter), and SuperNet monthly plans with different data volumes and validity periods.
4. Value-Added Services (VAS): Additional services including ringback tones (Renty), call forwarding, voice mail, SMS services, international roaming, balance transfer, and emergency credit (Salfni).
5. Corporate/Business Services: Dedicated business plans and data packages for enterprises, organizations and embassies, with special pricing and account management.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SabaFon is a Yemeni mobile telecommunications operator providing prepaid and postpaid mobile voice, SMS, data and value-added services to consumers and enterprises across Yemen. Its offerings span multiple branded prepaid lines, tiered data/social media packages, international roaming, and corporate business plans, delivered over a GSM network using NOKIA infrastructure with STL cloud-based billing.

Product overview

SabaFon (الشركة اليمنية للهاتف النقال) is Yemen's first and largest mobile telecommunications company, established in 2001 and celebrating 21 years of operations. The company operates a dual product architecture comprising a postpaid billing system (نظام الفوترة) and a prepaid system (نظام الدفع المسبق) as its core platforms. The prepaid system includes multiple branded lines including Super Nabt (سوبر نبأ), Super Layali (سوبر ليالي), Yalla Youth (يلّا), and Belqis Women (بلقيس), each offering tailored rate packages. The product portfolio extends through value-added services including WhatsApp Plus (واتساب بلاس), Facebook Plus (فيسبوك بلاس), Facebook+Twitter packages, Yablash packages (باقات يابلاش), SabaNet internet packages (سبأنت), Super Net packages (سوبر نت), and Tawasul communication packages (باقات تواصل), plus recharge services via electronic charger (الشاحن الإلكتروني) and credit transfer. Additional VAS offerings encompass voice mail, call management (سبأكنترول), missed call detection (الكاشف المحترف), ringtone customization (رنتي), emergency credit (سلفني), voice messaging, and international roaming. The company recently partnered with STL for cloud-based billing transformation and uses NOKIA network infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Prepaid Mobile Service (نظام الدفع المسبق) Pay-as-you-go prepaid mobile service allowing subscribers to pay in advance for voice calls, SMS and data with multiple recharge tiers (600–10,000 YER) and validity periods (7–220 days). Targeted at mass-market individual subscribers.
• Postpaid Mobile Service / Fotera (نظام الفوترة) Monthly-billed postpaid mobile service (Fotera) with reduced call rates compared to prepaid, including calling and messaging packages. Targeted at postpaid individual subscribers and corporate accounts.
• Credit Recharge (تعبئة الرصيد) Mobile credit recharge service enabling subscribers to top up prepaid balances via electronic charger, scratch cards and balance transfer across multiple price points with extended validity periods. Targeted at individual prepaid subscribers.
• Super Nabt Prepaid Line (خط سوبر نبأ) Branded prepaid line with reduced intra-network rates (3.5 YER/min within network, 2 YER per SMS), multiple recharge tiers (600–10,000 YER) and extended validity up to 220 days; new subscribers receive 1,400 minutes and 1,700 SMS free for 20 days upon activation. Targeted at individual prepaid subscribers.
• Super Layali Prepaid Line (خط سوبر ليالي) Prepaid line offering reduced rates during night hours (11 PM–9 AM) at 0.2 units per call and 0.1 units per SMS for cost-conscious evening users. Targeted at individual prepaid subscribers.
• Yala Youth Prepaid Line (يلا خط شباب) Prepaid line designed for Yemeni youth with economic rates and easy usage, including multiple package options tailored to young users' communication patterns. Targeted at Yemeni youth segment.
• Belqis Women Prepaid Line (بلقيس خط المرأة العصرية) Prepaid line designed specifically for Yemeni women with packages (Original Belqis, Belqis Call) featuring reduced rates down to 0.2 units and customized plans aligned with women's usage needs. Targeted at Yemeni women subscribers.
• SabaNet Internet Data Packages (باقات سبأنت) Data SIM packages providing monthly internet browsing with options ranging from 200 MB to 3 GB at 130–700 units per month. Targeted at individual and SME data users.
• Super Net Internet Packages (باقات سوبر نت) Internet data packages offering doubled monthly data volumes at existing prices across multiple capacity tiers for prepaid and postpaid subscribers. Targeted at individual data subscribers seeking larger mobile data allowances.
• WhatsApp Plus (واتساب بلاس) WhatsApp-focused social media package enabling video, photo, file and voice message sharing with a 30-day subscription, including 100 MB data, 300 SMS and 100 minutes for prepaid subscribers (125 units), or 1,000 YER for postpaid (150 MB + WhatsApp). Targeted at social-media-focused prepaid and postpaid subscribers.
• International Roaming (خدمة التجوال الدولي) International roaming service offered without a monthly subscription for prepaid lines, covering voice calls, SMS and data worldwide with region-based rates (GCC 425 YER/min, Arab states 460 YER/min, Europe/Turkey/US/Canada 620 YER/min, rest of world 680 YER/min, satellite 1,000 YER/min). Targeted at individual subscribers traveling abroad and corporate roamers.
• Corporate Business Services (خدمات الشركات) Dedicated corporate plans and data packages for enterprises, organizations and embassies, with special pricing, account management and volume-based offerings handled by a dedicated corporate sales team. Targeted at Yemen-based enterprises, government entities and embassies.

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• STL (Sterlite Technologies Limited)coreTechnology or Integration · 6 September 2021Five-year partnership for cloud-based billing and OSS/BSS transformation. STL (a listed company on India's National Stock Exchange) is providing modern solutions for recharge, billing, and CRM operations running on Microsoft Azure cloud infrastructure. Phase 1 was implemented in under 90 days. The partnership addresses SabaFon's challenges with legacy systems inherited from traditional billing platforms.
• NOKIAcoreTechnology or Integration · 11 January 2021Strategic partnership for network infrastructure expansion using NOKIA's telecommunications systems. The partnership aims to increase network capacity to serve more subscribers and improve service quality. NOKIA partnership dates back to the network's launch in 2001. The expansion project enables SabaFon to enhance coverage in government-controlled areas.
• PROTEIsupportingTechnology or Integration · 7 January 2021Agreement for VAS (Value-Added Services) systems, maintenance and support. PROTEI is a global company that provides telecommunications operators with supplementary services and messaging platforms.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Zain Group: Kuwait-based MNO group operating across the Middle East and Africa with a prepaid-led, segmented youth/women product strategy similar to SabaFon's Yalla/Belqis sub-brands. Comparable in operating-model approach but with regional scale rather than a single-country focus.
• Ooredoo: Qatar-headquartered MNO group with operating companies across MENA and Southeast Asia. Comparable as a regional prepaid-heavy operator with government ownership influence, similar to SabaFon's political alignment, though operating in multiple, generally more stable jurisdictions.
• STC (Saudi Telecom Company): Saudi Arabia's incumbent MNO and a major regional telecom group with operations across the Middle East. Comparable as a regional full-service operator with similar vendor stack (NOKIA, Microsoft) and government-aligned positioning, though in a far more developed and stable market.

Broad incumbents

• MTN Group: South Africa-based emerging-markets MNO incumbent operating across Africa and the Middle East, parent of MTN Yemen. Comparable in business model (prepaid-led emerging-market MNO with VAS), capital structure, and vendor ecosystem, but with vastly larger geographic and financial scale.
• Vodafone Group: UK-headquartered global telecom incumbent with operations across Europe, Africa and MEA. Comparable as a broad incumbent pursuing BSS modernization and segmented youth/women prepaid brands (e.g., Vodafone M-Pesa, Vodafone Yemen historically), providing a global benchmark for SabaFon's strategic direction.
• e& (Etisalat Group): UAE-based global telecom group with MNO operations across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Comparable as a broad incumbent with a NOKIA/Oracle vendor stack and a similar government-aligned posture; serves as a regional benchmark for telecom multiple and ARPU even though its markets are materially richer than Yemen's.
• Orange (formerly France Télécom): French-headquartered global telecom incumbent with significant MEA footprint (Orange Egypt, Orange Morocco, etc.). Comparable as a large incumbent with similar BSS/OSS modernization playbooks and a multi-country operating model, though with materially greater scale and stability than SabaFon.

Direct peers

• Y Telecom (Yemen): Yemeni mobile operator offering voice, SMS and data services to Yemeni subscribers. While smaller and less documented, it competes in the same Yemeni market and regulatory environment as SabaFon, making it a direct in-country peer despite limited public footprint.
• Yemen Mobile: Yemen's other major mobile operator, historically state-linked and currently operating primarily in Houthi-controlled areas including Sana'a. Directly comparable to SabaFon as a Yemeni MNO competing for the same national subscriber pool, but on the opposite side of the political divide.
• MTN Yemen (Spacetel Yemen): Yemeni subsidiary of South Africa's MTN Group, one of the principal mobile competitors to SabaFon inside Yemen. Operates the same GSM voice/data/SMS services, sharing market, regulatory regime, and macro environment, making it the closest functional comparable.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sabafon

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

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 SabaFon