VEON Ltd (NASDAQ: VEON) shares are soaring 10.09% in pre-market trading following the release of its impressive first-quarter 2025 earnings report. The global digital operator, parent company of Ukraine's Kyivstar and Pakistan's Jazz, has demonstrated robust growth driven by its digital services strategy.

The company reported a total revenue of $1.026 billion for Q1, representing an 8.9% year-over-year increase (12.9% in local currency terms). This performance exceeded analyst expectations of $996 million. VEON's EBITDA also showed strong growth, rising 13.7% year-over-year to $439 million. Notably, the company's earnings per share reached $1.36, significantly outperforming the analyst consensus estimate of $0.83.

A key highlight of VEON's Q1 results was the remarkable 50% surge in digital revenues, underscoring the success of the company's "digital operator" strategy. CEO Kaan Terzioglu emphasized the importance of this shift, stating, "We believe that the future of our industry will move in this direction. It's not anymore about selling number of minutes or number of gigabytes." The company's various digital services, including entertainment, financial services, and superapps, have shown impressive growth rates of 20%, 33%, and 22% respectively. Despite ongoing conflicts in its operating regions, VEON has maintained its full-year 2025 outlook, projecting total revenue growth of 12-14% and EBITDA growth of 13-15% in local currency terms. This positive performance and optimistic forecast have clearly resonated with investors, driving the stock's significant pre-market rally.