Boldyn Networks

A London-headquartered neutral host company that builds and runs shared 4G and 5G mobile networks for places like the London Underground, stadiums and cities.

About Boldyn Networks

Boldyn Networks builds mobile coverage that several phone companies can share. Putting up separate equipment for every operator in a tunnel, stadium or city street would be wasteful, so a "neutral host" such as Boldyn builds one network and rents access to the operators. The company says it creates digital infrastructure including mobile coverage, full fibre and smart-city systems. It is best known in the UK for a long-term agreement with Transport for London to build and run 4G and 5G coverage across London Underground stations, platforms and tunnels, and for work with Sunderland City Council on 5G and public Wi-Fi.

The Boldyn name started in 2023, when BAI Communications and a group of linked businesses, including Mobilitie, Transit Wireless, Vilicom and ZenFi Networks, came together under one brand. Its group chief executive is named as Igor Leprince, and in the UK and Ireland the chief executive is named as Brendan O'Reilly. Other UK projects reported include 5G at the First Direct Arena in Leeds, at Olympia in London and at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, and mobile connectivity for the Hornsea 2 and Moray East offshore wind farms.

The company describes its aim as helping operators, cities and governments with efficient, sustainable connectivity and helping build a smarter, safer and more connected future. In the UK it says it wants to deliver connectivity in busy venues "without sacrificing cost or energy efficiency". These are the company's words, and they describe the problem it is trying to solve rather than anything we have measured.

In June 2023 the company said it was setting up its global headquarters in London, and that its UK workforce had grown tenfold in two years to create close to 800 direct and indirect jobs. That is a company statement and a 2023 figure, so check how many people are employed now. Work happens in many places, from London's tube network to Sunderland, Leeds and offshore wind farms in the North Sea, so staff can be either in offices or out on sites.

Jobs in a business like this include radio and network engineers, project managers, civil and electrical site teams, software and cloud engineers, planners who handle permissions and landlords, and sales and partnership teams who talk to operators and councils. If you are interested in how phones get a signal underground or in a packed stadium, this is a real-world example. Physics, maths, geography, computing and design and technology all connect, and the company's own website lists its current roles.

What they do

• {'desc': 'Shared 4G and 5G coverage that several operators use, in tunnels, stations and venues.', 'title': 'Neutral host mobile networks'}
• {'desc': 'Dedicated mobile networks for places such as ports, wind farms and large sites.', 'title': 'Private 5G networks'}
• {'desc': 'Full-fibre, public Wi-Fi and sensor networks for cities such as Sunderland.', 'title': 'Smart city and fibre'}

Key facts

• Rebranded from BAI Communications in 2023; group CEO Igor Leprince
• Long-term agreement with Transport for London for 4G/5G across the London Underground (June 2023 report)
• Said in June 2023 it was setting up its global headquarters in London
• UK projects reported include Stadium of Light in Sunderland, First Direct Arena in Leeds and Olympia in London

Website: boldyn.com