Pakistan Stock Exchange-listed Zuma Resources has approved the full acquisition of sim.market, an international digital connectivity and electronic SIM platform, marking the company’s formal entry into the global eSIM market through its newly incorporated United Kingdom subsidiary, Zuma Global Ltd. The board greenlit the transaction on October 2 and disclosed it to the Pakistan Stock Exchange on October 5, with the company authorising its chief executive officer to negotiate the final terms of the deal, which covers the sim.market brand, trademark rights, domain, website, platform, intellectual property, and all customer and commercial rights. No purchase price was disclosed in the filing.
Zuma Global Ltd, the vehicle through which the acquisition is being executed, was incorporated in the United Kingdom on September 18, just weeks before the board’s approval of the sim.market deal, reflecting the pace at which the company has been moving to establish its international telecommunications footprint. The acquisition builds on a foundation that Zuma has been assembling over recent months through a three-year global connectivity agreement with US-based Telna North America, which grants the company access to multi-IMSI infrastructure covering mobile data, voice, SMS, eSIM connectivity, and international roaming across more than 200 countries. Together, the Telna partnership and the sim.market platform give Zuma a combined international coverage footprint and a consumer-facing digital brand through which to monetise that coverage for travellers and businesses seeking seamless global connectivity without the cost and friction of conventional roaming arrangements or physical SIM card procurement.
The company projects initial annual revenue of between $3 million and $5 million from the sim.market platform, a figure that is contingent on regulatory approvals in relevant markets. In the United Kingdom, Zuma is already engaging with Ofcom to secure licensing for physical SIM, eSIM, and digital connectivity services, with the UK serving as the natural regulatory home for Zuma Global Ltd. Back in Pakistan, the company is separately evaluating an application for a Mobile Virtual Network Operator licence from PTA, which would allow it to offer mobile services domestically without building its own network infrastructure, instead reselling capacity on established Pakistani operator networks under its own brand.
The acquisition represents a dramatic strategic pivot for a company that formerly operated as Bilal Fibres Limited, a textile sector entity, before initiating its transition toward telecommunications earlier in 2026. For a PSX-listed company to move from textile fibres to international eSIM platform acquisition within a single year is a transformation that will attract scrutiny from analysts and investors watching whether the company can execute on an ambition that takes it into a technically complex and highly competitive global market. The global eSIM market has been growing rapidly as both consumers and enterprise users shift from physical SIM cards toward software-based connectivity management, with growth driven by travel, Internet of Things device connectivity, and the increasing availability of eSIM-compatible devices across all major smartphone manufacturers. Zuma’s entry through the acquisition of an established platform with existing customers and commercial relationships, rather than building from scratch, provides a more credible starting point than a greenfield international connectivity venture would have offered.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
