Network APIs are no longer sitting in the background of telecom conversations. They are quickly becoming one of the clearest ways for operators to turn network intelligence into enterprise value, helping businesses verify users, reduce fraud, improve onboarding, and deliver smoother digital experiences.
For Nancy Abou Shakra, Head of Messaging & Digital Platform Sales at Bayobab, an MTN Group company, this shift is already visible in the market. Her role brings her into regular conversations with operators, enterprises, and Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS) players across different regions, giving her a practical view of both the network capabilities being developed and the business problems customers are trying to solve.
In an interview with Inside Telecom, Nancy spoke about why Network APIs are moving from technical discussion to real business use cases, where silent authentication fits into the picture, and what it will take to turn network intelligence into scalable value for enterprises and their customers.
In the conversation below, Nancy shares her perspective on why Network APIs are gaining momentum, where enterprise demand is coming from, and what operators need to get right for these capabilities to scale.
Given your exposure to operators, enterprises, and CPaaS players across different markets, what is making Network APIs more relevant now?
What Nancy is seeing across different markets is that the demand is no longer theoretical. Network APIs are moving from industry discussion to solving real business problems.
“Enterprises want to make customer journeys faster, safer, and more seamless,” she says. A bank may want more confidence before approving a transaction. A fintech may want smoother onboarding without adding unnecessary friction. A digital platform may want to verify whether a phone number is associated with the device being used, or whether the SIM has recently changed before allowing access.
These are not futuristic use cases.
Nancy hears versions of them in almost every enterprise discussion she has.
What is different now is that the demand is clear, and the standardization work has advanced far enough for the industry to act on it. The network is no longer only carrying the transaction. It can also help assess the context around it in real time.
Silent authentication is often presented as the flagship use case. Is that where operators should begin?
According to Nancy, yes, absolutely. It is a strong starting point because it makes verification easier for the customer while giving the enterprise a stronger and more reliable signal.
“The customer should not have to wait for an OTP, copy a code, or move between screens just to prove who they are,” she explains.
Verification happens in the background, creating a frictionless experience across login, onboarding, and transaction approval.
Because the verification comes directly from the network, it can also help reduce exposure to phishing, social engineering, and account takeover. Most importantly, it can help address artificially inflated traffic, or AIT, one of today’s biggest market challenges from both a cost and customer experience perspective.
It also gives the enterprise clear, real-time feedback, so they know whether to continue the journey, add another check, or move to a different verification method.
“So yes, silent authentication is a very strong entry point,” she says. “But the opportunity becomes much bigger when it works alongside other network signals.”
If silent authentication is only the starting point, where does the real value come next?
The bigger opportunity sits in orchestration.
“For me, this is where it becomes more interesting,” Nancy says. “One API can solve one part of the journey, but the value becomes much stronger when the right signals work together at the right time.”
Number Verification, SIM Swap, KYC Match, and device or location signals can each add a different layer of context. Together, they can give the enterprise a clearer view of trust and risk before deciding.
Enterprises should not have to piece those capabilities together on their own. It should receive one simple service that brings the relevant signals together in the background.
Beyond identity and trust, Quality on Demand also creates opportunities for services that need a specific level of network performance.
From a commercial point of view, how should Network APIs be positioned, and what do enterprise buyers actually want beyond the technical pitch?
The pattern I keep seeing across the industry is that we sometimes lead with the API instead of the problem. Nancy admits she has made versions of that mistake herself. You get excited about the capability, explain what it does technically, and then wonder why the room is not as exciting as you are.
“The customer does not wake up wanting an API,” she says. “They wake up wanting fewer fraud losses, smoother onboarding, higher conversion, and fewer customers abandoning a transaction halfway through.”
That means the conversation has to start with the business outcome.
Instead of simply saying, “We offer Number Verification,” operators and partners should be asking: Where are customers dropping out of the journey? Where do you need more confidence before approving a transaction? What happens when verification fails?
That is when the API becomes part of a business solution, not just a technical integration.
The commercial model also needs to remain flexible. Pricing should vary depending on the API, the use case, and the value being delivered. Outcome-based pricing should also be part of the discussion.
Operators also need to invest in the right foundation, from security, data quality, and entitlement capabilities to developer experience and commercial integration. They should not see this only as a cost, but as the infrastructure needed to build new digital revenue streams.
Middle East and Africa (MEA) brings together very different markets, network conditions, and customer behaviors. What needs to happen for Network APIs to scale consistently across the region and beyond?
Across the markets Nancy works with, consistency and coverage are two of the issues that come up most often.
“Enterprises need to know that an API will behave predictably across operators and markets,” she says. “They cannot be expected to build a different integration for every network.”
That is why CAMARA and GSMA Open Gateway are so important. Standardization is not only about technology; it is what makes wider commercial adoption possible.
Coverage matters just as much. Solutions need to support users on mobile data, Wi-Fi, and in off-net scenarios. This is where TS.43 can help improve the reach and reliability of silent authentication.
One thing I have seen in practice is that coverage is also about reach within each country. Reaching only part of the subscriber base is not enough for an enterprise. They want broad national coverage, which makes collaboration between operators essential, both within the same country and across markets.
The integration journey also needs to be simple. Enterprises need clear documentation, sandboxes, reliable response codes, defined SLAs, and a clear fallback when the API does not return the expected result.
Without that consistency, enterprises may like the use case but still hesitate to build it into a critical customer journey.
As AI becomes more autonomous, particularly with the rise of Agentic AI, what role can Network APIs play?
Their role will become even more important.
What is clear to me is that operators need to be confident that network signals are made available securely, responsibly, and with the right controls in place. At the same time, enterprises will need those signals to make more confident decisions as AI applications start acting on behalf of users.
“As AI applications begin acting on behalf of users, enterprises will need trusted, real-time context before allowing sensitive actions,” Nancy stated.
That context will become increasingly important before approving a payment, login, or access request. Operators, in turn, need to be confident that network signals are made available securely, responsibly, and with the right controls in place.
Network APIs allow operators to provide those signals in a controlled way, while protecting customer privacy, consent, and the underlying network data. This is how the network moves from a passive role to a more active one, helping to validate and secure the interaction.
For Nancy, this is what the telco-to-techco transition looks like in practice. Operators that build reliable, well-documented, and consistent Network API infrastructure are positioning themselves for something much bigger than today’s authentication use cases.
“They have the opportunity to become part of the trust layer for the next generation of digital applications,” she says.
The market may still be early, but this is where Nancy believes it’s heading.
“What excites me most is that the network has always had more intelligence than we have been able to use. Network APIs are now giving us a way to bring that intelligence into real customer journeys. And the real value will not come from one signal alone, but from bringing the right signals together at the right time. That is when connectivity becomes context, and context becomes trust.”
— Nancy Abou Shakra, Head of Messaging & Digital Platform Sales, Bayobab, an MTN Group company
Inside Telecom provides you with an extensive list of content covering all aspects of the Tech industry. Keep an eye on our Press Releases section to stay informed and updated with our daily articles.
