Money rates are not biting // "Sber" offers subscribers free communication

Money tariffs do not bite "Sber" offers free communication to subscribers When switching from your number to the virtual operator "SberMobail" and transferring your salary to "Sber", the company offers a free tariff. The operators of the "Big Four" do not support such promotions, as they only contribute to the short-term acquisition of subscribers, but in the longer term, they are destructive to the market as they launch a new round of price wars. Furthermore, sources in the market warn that host operators may simply close access to the network for virtual operator partners if losses exceed their own profit from cooperation. "Sber" launched a promotion in which it promises free communication from its virtual operator (MVNO) "SberMobail" when transferring a number to an operator and transferring a salary to "Sber", "Kommersant" reported to the company. Such subscribers have access to a tariff of 50 GB of internet, 300 minutes of calls, as well as unlimited traffic to certain messengers and ecosystem services of the company, added "Sber". "The offer for 'Sber' salary clients is valid permanently. In accordance with the bank's internal procedures, free service is connected for 12 months and then extended if the client maintains their salary status," they say in the company. At the same time, the rules of the promotion on the bank's website state that the promotion is valid until December 31, 2027. If a subscriber consumes the main package of services, they can purchase additional options: 1 GB of mobile internet will cost 9 rubles, 100 minutes will cost 119 rubles, and 100 daily SMS will cost 50 rubles per month, they say in "Sber". The offer also specifies that participants of the promotion cannot be users who have withdrawn their consent to receive advertising newsletters from the bank. According to TelecomDaily, the subscriber base of MVNOs in Russia already exceeds 20 million users. The largest players in the market are Yota (about 40% of the market; uses the "MegaFon" network), "T-Mobail" (27%; T2 and MTS networks), "Rostelecom" (15%; T2 network), and "SberMobail" (6%). "SberMobail" specified that they currently have 7.5 million subscribers. In the Russian Federation, there are 272.6 million active SIM cards, according to the Ministry of Digital Development for 2025. According to the bank's reporting, the number of retail clients of "Sber" grew by 0.7% in 2025, reaching 110.7 million people. At the same time, according to the company Spektr, the growth rate of ecosystem subscribers has slowed down: in 2024, their number increased by 2.2 times, and in 2025, it increased by only 2.2%, reaching 23 million (see "Kommersant" from April 24). The company's net profit for 2025 grew by 7.9%, to 1.7 trillion rubles. "In general, burning the margin of the mobile business by selling communication for zero—this is the choice of a virtual operator, and probably such advantages, such as increased customer LTV and higher profitability of other business units, justify the decision in the partner's business logic," they believe in "T2 Mobile". The operator does not support the discounting of communication, as this practice "contributes to the short-term acquisition of a base, but in the longer term, it is destructive to the market as it launches a new round of price wars." Telecom is a capital-intensive business; building communication networks and launching new technologies require systemic investments, "therefore selling for zero is harmful both to the industry and to the MVNO business as a whole," they are sure in "T2 Mobile". In "Vympelkom," MTS, "T-Mobail" refused to comment, and MegaFon and Yota did not answer substantively. Such promotions "can lead to fatal consequences for the MVNO business as a whole," believes a source in the telecom market. "When host operators decide that the threat posed by virtual operators outweighs the benefits of this business, they will simply close access to the network for partners. The first warning sign for them was the unavailability of 5G technology for MVNOs, approved by the decision of the GKRCh," he is sure. "Sber" demonstrates an ecosystem approach, says Konstantin Ankilov, managing partner of "TMT Consulting". "The goal is not to earn money from communication services, but from the services of the 'Sber' group as a whole. This is a threat to the main operators who cannot offer for free what is their main source of income," he notes. The economics of the operator within the banking ecosystem is negative, explains the source from the market: "Only T-Bank is in profit so far. 'Sber' will maintain the negative economics of the product by receiving comprehensive preferences." At the same time, he says that such a promotion is "painful" for the market, "the classic operators, which are currently in difficult debt conditions, cannot oppose anything competitive."