Enterprises Pursue 207% Returns Despite Cost and Integration Barriers

Enterprises worldwide plan to invest an average 9.6% of revenue in digital transformation between 2026 and 2032, targeting a 207% return according to GSMA Intelligence. For every $1,000 of revenue in those plans, $96 goes toward transformation.

That 207% figure is an expectation, not a booked result; the published findings do not explain how it is calculated. The same survey shows that 94% of enterprises face implementation challenges. Cost ranks first at 41%, followed by integration with existing systems at 39%; only 6% report no challenge.

What does the spending strategy assume?

Pablo Iacopino, Head of Research and Commercial Content at GSMA Intelligence, said:

“Enterprises do not see AI, 5G, 6G and sovereignty as separate bets. They see one connected story about trust, resilience and return. They are backing AI with their budgets because they expect it to make them more secure and more efficient.

They rely on 5G because it gives that AI a secure foundation to run on. And they are willing to pay extra for 6G and sovereign technology because trust and control matter as much as performance.”

The statement links AI, 5G, 6G and sovereign technology through trust and resilience, but it remains a strategic case. The survey measures intended budgets and reported barriers, not audited savings, deployed coverage or delivered throughput.

What are enterprises buying?

AI takes the largest share of transformation spending at 19% of the total. The combined category covering 5G connectivity, devices and custom networks accounts for 16%, ranking second overall.

• Across all 10 sectors, AI remains the largest spending area. Its share ranges from 22.4% in manufacturing and industrial businesses to 16.1% in utilities and energy.
• Enterprises consider 5G especially important where devices and machines move, including transportation, logistics and warehousing, manufacturing and industrial businesses, and automotive and mobility.
• Cybersecurity has the most advanced use across every sector, while enhanced security leads transformation objectives in seven of the 10.

Which sectors are committing most?

Manufacturing and industrial businesses plan the largest revenue commitment at 10.4%, followed by financial services at 10.2%. Retail and healthcare each allocate 9.9%, above the 9.6% cross-industry average.

Financial services lead the overall transformation ranking for technology use, importance and planned investment. Manufacturing and industrial businesses rank first for the strength of their transformation objectives, while utilities and energy complete the top three by ranking second for technology use and investment.

Can policy unlock the spending?

Telecoms policy has mixed effects. Although 61% of enterprises say telecoms policy and regulation support digital transformation, 24% report a negative effect on projects in the past 24 months.

Those measures can coexist because broad policy support can still accompany harmful effects on a specific project. Among enterprises that say policy and regulation hinder transformation, the consequences are substantial:

• 53% have changed technology choices.
• 46% have reduced expected returns.
• 41% have postponed investments.
• 38% have reduced the scale of projects.
• 24% have cancelled projects entirely.

Across the full sample, those effects equate to:

• 13% changing technology choices.
• 11% lowering expected returns.
• 10% postponing investment.
• 6% cancelling projects.

Enterprises also set out four policy priorities:

• Accelerating deployment of modern digital infrastructure, including 5G, AI, cloud and cybersecurity: 43%.
• Enhancing regulatory agility and reforming legacy frameworks: 42%, almost level with the infrastructure goal.
• Clear and consistent data governance and cross-border data-transfer rules: 38%.
• Trust and digital safety through secure and resilient connectivity: 37%.

These figures represent preferences rather than enacted policy, and the survey does not identify the specific rules or jurisdictions behind respondents’ reported effects.

Where will investment be highest?

Sub-Saharan Africa leads planned investment at 10.7% of enterprise revenue through 2032, as businesses seek to close technology-adoption gaps. ASEAN follows at 10.6%, and its AI allocation reaches 21% of transformation budgets, the highest proportion recorded across regions.

Other major-market commitments are:

• North America: 9.8%.
• Europe: 9.4%.
• MENA: 9.3%.
• China: 9.0%.

North America, Asia Pacific and China also rank as the geographies least affected by telecoms policy and regulatory requirements. The survey presents that as evidence of the importance of supportive operating environments.

How much confidence do the findings deserve?

The findings come from GSMA Intelligence’s Enterprise in Focus: Global Digital Transformation Survey 2026. Between May and July 2026, it surveyed 6,342 enterprises undertaking digital transformation across 50 countries and 10 vertical sectors, interviewing decision-makers for projects and those who advise them.

• Sample composition: small and medium-sized enterprises with 20–249 employees, 30%; large enterprises with 250–9,999 employees, 63%; and mega-enterprises with 10,000 or more employees, 8%.
• Sector coverage: financial services; manufacturing and industrial; utilities and energy; automotive and mobility; transportation, logistics and warehousing; retail; healthcare; public sector; media and entertainment; and agriculture, forestry and fishing.
• Unless stated otherwise, results are aggregate or weighted averages across all surveyed countries and sectors.

GSMA Intelligence is the research and consulting arm of the GSMA, which represents more than 1,100 mobile operators. The group says its data platform covers more than 1,000 operators, 4,500 networks and over 50 million data points; those figures describe the platform, not the enterprise survey sample.

GSMA Intelligence published the findings in London on 9 November 2026. Alongside the full survey, it has recent regional focus reports on North America, ASEAN, Asia Pacific, China and India. The MENA focus report and associated press release appeared on 9 November at MWC26 Doha in Qatar, an event running 8–10 November 2026.

Over the next three years, enterprises want telecoms policymakers and regulators to prioritize cybersecurity (61%), AI (59%) and connectivity networks (57%), and the investment plans running to 2032 will test whether cost control, integration work and policy execution can deliver the forecast 207% return.