The 12 telecoms firms represented in the MEED 100 range in size from Saudi Telecom Company (STC), with a market capitalisation of $33bn, to Kuwait’s National Mobile Telecommunications Company (Wataniya), worth a tenth of that at $3.3bn.

While some of the smaller players have started to catch up in recent years, the five largest operators combined have a market capitalisation of about $100bn – three times that of the other seven.

STC regained its position as the region’s largest listed telecoms firm this year, climbing to 3rd position and finishing three places higher than Abu Dhabi’s Etisalat.

The Saudi operator had been burdened in recent years by some of its foreign units, but has managed to clean up its international portfolio following the sale of Indonesian subsidiary Axis to Malaysia’s Axiata Group. Revised internal strategies have led to cost efficiencies, contributing to the company returning to profit in 2013.

STC’s monopoly on the Saudi telecoms sector was broken in 2004, when the government opened it up to competition and awarded several new mobile operating licences, but the firm has managed to retain a market share of 51 per cent.

Intense rivalry with etihad etisalat company (Mobily), which has 30 per cent of the market, is set to continue as both look to upgrade their infrastructure networks in the kingdom. The latter moved up one place in this year’s Top 100, ranking 8th, with a market capitalisation of nearly $19bn.

In the UAE, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (Du), another smaller player taking on a regional heavyweight, rose three places in the table to 35th. Launched in 2006, the company was intended to end the monopoly of Etisalat in the country’s telecoms sector.

Duoperates fixed-line telephone and television services in free zones in Dubai, but competes across the UAE with Etisalat for mobile business. The company has managed to take a 46 per cent share of the mobile market, but competition intensified further at the start of this year with the introduction of mobile number portability between the two operators.

Etisalat has agreed to buy a controlling 53 per cent interest in Maroc Telecom from French conglomerate Vivendi

Qatar’s Ooredoo (formerly Qatar Telecom) also improved its standing, moving up two slots to 18th place. The firm underwent a rebranding exercise last year in order to facilitate its further expansion overseas. Ooredoo is already reliant on its international operations for the bulk of its income. Its June 2013 licence win in Burma will add to operations in Indonesia, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman and Algeria. Domestically, Ooredoo launched 4G mobile broadband services last year. The government-controlled firm aims to become one of the top 20 telecoms providers in the world by 2020.

Kuwait’s Mobile Telecommunications Company (Zain Group), on the other hand, has been less successful. It fell to 28th in the MEED 100, from 13th last year as it focused on restructuring its debt.

Another company that took a hit is Maroc Telecom, which dropped from 16th to 26th place, reflecting a fall in sales revenues in Morocco. In November 2013, Etisalat agreed to buy a controlling 53 per cent interest in the operator from French conglomerate Vivendi, which will give the UAE company more exposure to sub-Saharan African countries. The $5.4bn acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of May this year. Ooredoo withdrew its offer for the stake after growing frustrated with the protracted negotiations.

The region’s worst performers are located in Iran, Egypt and Iraq. Telecommunication Company of Iran plummeted from 12 to 65, reflecting the depreciation of the Iranian rial. Telecom Egypt’s ranking dropped from 58th to 78th, while Baghdad-listed Asiacell slipped to 71 after debuting in the Top 100 last year in 42nd place. Its early 2013 IPO, which raised $1.3bn, was the largest in the Middle East since 2008.

The next 12 months may prove more positive for these firms as sanctions on Iran look set to ease. Egypt’s economic landscape is also improving gradually, and Iraq plans to auction 3G licences after several years of delays. 2014 could also see the
long-overdue listings of mobile operators Korek Telecom and Zain Iraq on the Baghdad stock exchange.

At the end of the performance scale was Wataniya, ranked 97th after sliding from 49 in 2013. The Kuwaiti company has seen its market share shrink as a result of heavy domestic competition.

One telecoms firm was a new entrant this year – Mobile Communication Company of Iran (also known as Hamrah-e-Avval), which debuted in 77th place. Zain Saudi Arabia dropped out of the list, along with Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel), which did not make the cut due to the losses suffered by its unit in Pakistan.