VEON Ltd. — Ethics Grade D+

VEON Ltd. receives an overall ethics grade of D+ (34/100) on CancelCo's corporate accountability database. Sector: Telecommunications. Market cap: Large Cap.

Category scores

• labor: 45
• privacy: 25
• consumer: 40
• environment: 50
• humanRights: 30

Documented incidents (3)

• Uzbekistan Bribery Scandal (high, 2016) — VEON (then VimpelCom) paid $795 million to settle investigations into tens of millions of dollars in bribes paid to a government official in Uzbekistan to obtain telecom licenses. It was one of the largest FCPA cases in history.
• Ethical Delays in Russia Exit (medium, 2023) — Following the invasion of Ukraine, VEON faced criticism for the slow divestment of its Russian business (Beeline), which arguably continued to contribute to the Russian economy and state data access for over a year.
• Pakistan Outsourcing Dispute (medium, 2022) — Subsidiary Jazz faced labor strikes and legal challenges over the mass firing of permanent staff and replacement with third-party outsourced workers with fewer benefits and no job security.

Documented good deeds

• Digital Literacy in Emerging Markets — Launched digital literacy pilots in Pakistan and Ukraine to provide safe internet training to rural women and youth.

Ethical alternatives

• Telia Company AB — Rigorous anti-corruption ethics and world-leading transparency in human rights reporting.