Industry Thought Leadership

The global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has radically changed the way the world functions in a very short space of time. From the sudden shift to remote working for millions to national lockdowns across the globe, COVID-19 is changing consumer attitudes, behaviours and purchasing habits. According to an Accenture report, many of these new ways will remain post-pandemic as consumers embrace digital commerce and online tools to learn and connect with others.

DT One, the world’s leading B2B network for mobile top-up solutions, bill payments and mobile rewards, has seen the impact of COVID-19 as telcos around the world observe dramatic increases in the number and value of international mobile data and airtime credit top-ups.

One of DT One’s key product offerings is phone-to-phone (P2P) cross-border top-ups - which give telco customers the option to buy data, call time or text time for anyone in any country instantly as a value-added service.

For telcos offering international top-ups to countries like the Philippines, Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal, digital channels have seen more than 100% growth on some corridors while smaller point-of-sale networks have lost more than 50% of traffic as a result of the stay-at-home orders and restrictions in movement.

For the millions of migrant workers who live and work abroad, staying connected to their loved ones back home is more important than ever, as worries and fears around health and job safety increase. Telcos have seen an increase in the value of transactions, with people sending higher amounts of credit than usual to their friends and family back home, underpinning the importance of human connection during difficult times.

“During times of crisis being able to talk to your family and loved ones is vitally important. At DT One we are committed to finding ways that we can help to support our partners, customers and people relying on our network to cope with the hardships that COVID-19 brings. Through a variety of promotions and added-value offers, we have been working closely with our partners to help people stay connected and online,” says Thierry Siminger, Chief Commercial Officer at DT One.