In September 2024, Ukrainian telecom giant Kyivstar acquired a small fixed-line internet operator, LanTrace, which serves several dozen towns in the Kyiv region and is headquartered in Boryspil.
The company had not publicly disclosed the name of the acquired business at the time, so the information remained under the radar. Scroll.media uncovered the details through documents Kyivstar submitted to the SEC ahead of its public listing.
Kyivstar is listed as the 100% owner of LanTrace in public registries, and the deal was reportedly valued at $2 million.
Expanding in the fixed internet sector is a key part of Kyivstar Group’s broader growth strategy. Today, Kyivstar ranks among the market leaders alongside Ukrtelecom and DVL (the group also includes the provider Volia). The company plans further expansion through acquisitions. The Ukrainian market is highly fragmented, with around 2,000 small operators, leaving ample room for consolidation.
In 2024, Forbes reported that investment firm Capital Times began approaching small providers with offers to sell. While the buyer wasn’t officially named, industry sources speculated that Kyivstar, a leading player with an expressed interest in growing this segment, was behind the initiative.
According to Scroll.media sources, Kyivstar’s appetite for M&A remains strong. The main challenge is the market’s fragmented nature: many small operators exist as multiple sole proprietorships. Kyivstar seeks partners who are either already operating transparently or willing to transition to more formal business structures.
Kyivstar is already the largest fixed-line internet provider in Ukraine by subscriber numbers, serving over 1.15 million customers at the end of 2024. Together, the top three providers accounted for roughly 24% of the total market as of December 2024.
