Vincent Fernando

Vincent Fernando from ZER0 0NE inquired about the drivers behind CTW's accelerated revenue growth in the second half of fiscal year 2025, specifically asking about MAU growth pockets and which games contributed most significantly. He also asked about the launch timelines for games in pre-registration and backlog, the strategy for U.S. market growth including M&A, and new capabilities in AI-driven user acquisition and creative production.

Answer

CFO Patrick Liu attributed the H2 revenue acceleration to the launch of four new titles in the second half and increased international advertising spend, particularly outside Japan. He clarified that 11 games are in pre-registration (with one, Crayon Shin-chan, just launched) and most are expected to launch in the current fiscal year, while backlog games will enter pre-registration soon. For U.S. growth, Mr. Liu outlined organic expansion, opening a New York office, hiring local specialists, and actively seeking M&A opportunities with local fandom reach. He expressed belief that U.S. "whale" customers could eventually lead per capita spending for certain games. Regarding AI, Mr. Liu detailed investments in optimizing ad management systems for global users and developing AI tools for art and design to streamline creative tasks and accelerate game launches, confirming AI is used to produce marketing creatives from IP visuals.

Vincent Fernando clarified whether CTW's IP agreements grant the ability to use original IP visuals and characters to generate marketing creatives, specifically asking if AI can be used for this purpose.

Answer

CFO Patrick Liu confirmed that CTW's IP agreements allow the use of original IP visuals and characters for marketing creatives, and that AI tools are indeed utilized to produce these creatives based on the original IP.

Vincent Fernando inquired about VEON's plans to leverage JazzCash and MMBL's capabilities to expand its fintech business into other markets. He also asked about strategies to increase JazzCash penetration among VEON's existing telco subscribers.

Answer

Kaan Terzioğlu, CEO of VEON, confirmed the intention to leverage Pakistan's fintech competencies in other markets like Bangladesh and Ukraine. He highlighted organic growth opportunities in Pakistan through increased smartphone penetration and digital service adoption among existing subscribers, viewing these as significant upsides.

Vincent Fernando asked if VEON plans to leverage JazzCash and MMBL's capabilities to expand its fintech business into other markets. He also inquired about strategies to increase JazzCash penetration among the existing 72.7 million telco subscribers, given the current 20.6 million monthly active users.

Answer

CEO Kaan Terzioğlu confirmed the intention to leverage competencies and experiences from Pakistan in other markets like Bangladesh and Ukraine, particularly in risk management and credit scoring for nano loans. For penetration, he identified Pakistan's frontier market status, with limits in 4G and smartphone penetration, as an upside. He emphasized focusing on affordable smartphone ownership and embedding digital services to convert the 40 million unconnected customers.

Vincent Fernando of Zero One Investment Research inquired about the growth outlook and EBITDA potential for the recently acquired ride-hailing service Uklon, and its potential for expansion into other VEON markets like Kazakhstan.

Answer

Group CEO Kaan Terzioğlu described Uklon as a fast-growing, EBITDA-accretive, and cash-generative business with a dominant market share in Ukraine. He confirmed plans to extend Uklon's capabilities to other markets over the next four quarters, leveraging VEON's customer acquisition channels and super app ecosystem to drive further growth.

Vincent Fernando of Zero One Investment Research inquired about the growth outlook and expansion strategy for the ride-hailing service, Uklon, particularly its potential extensibility into other VEON markets like Kazakhstan.

Answer

CEO Kaan Terzioğlu described Uklon as a fast-growing, cash-generative business with a dominant market share in Ukraine. He confirmed plans to expand Uklon's capabilities to other markets over the next four quarters, either organically or through M&A. He emphasized that Q2 results were purely organic and did not yet reflect synergies with VEON's broader ecosystem, suggesting future growth acceleration.

Vincent Fernando of Zero One Investment Research inquired about the growth trajectory and expansion plans for the recently acquired ride-hailing service, Uklon, given its strong initial EBITDA contribution. He also asked if recent growth was organic or driven by new investment from VEON.

Answer

Group CEO Kaan Terzioğlu described Uklon as a highly accretive asset with significant potential to expand into delivery and other markets within the next year. He clarified that Uklon's Q2 performance was entirely organic and that synergies from integrating with VEON's customer acquisition channels and super apps have not yet been realized, suggesting future growth potential.