The opportunity is real. But so are the risks. The biggest obstacle to growth can be simply staying connected. Emerging markets offer businesses enormous opportunities: new customers, growing digital economies, expanding supply chains and demand for services that established markets increasingly take for granted. But entering a new market isn’t just about finding customers or building distribution. It’s about being able to serve them consistently. A logistics company expanding across Central Asia needs reliable communication between warehouses, drivers and customers. A financial services platform entering Africa needs users to complete transactions. A broadcaster reaching audiences in the Middle East needs its content to remain accessible. When networks are filtered, throttled or unexpectedly disrupted, even a well-planned expansion can quickly become an expensive exercise in frustration.

From broadcasting to social media to product delivery, your value as a service company depends on continuous customer connection. If you’re in the service business, your product isn’t just what you sell. It’s the connection between you and your customer. A broadcaster needs to reach its audience. A social media platform needs users to connect, post and engage. A logistics company needs applications, drivers, warehouses and customers to continuously exchange information. The same principle applies to financial services, SaaS, messaging and IoT: when that connection breaks, the service disappears.

Digital Payments are Now Part of the Infrastructure... In India, online commerce isn’t just growing, it’s growing at an extraordinary scale. India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) processed more than 241 billion transactions worth approximately ₹314 trillion in FY2025–26, with transaction volume growing another 30% year over year. UPI now accounts for approximately 84% of India’s digital-payment transactions, with more than 700 banks participating in the system.^1,2 That means connectivity has become increasingly intertwined with everyday commerce.