Expansion of 5G Base Stations Across the Globe: Justifications Explored
Global 5G Deployment: A Race Among Leading Countries
The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of a robust internet connection for the majority of the global population. In response, countries worldwide are adopting changes to strengthen their networking systems, with the race of 5G taking centre stage.
As of 2021, China was the clear global leader in the deployment of 5G base stations, having aggressively built thousands of stations monthly to cover over 90% of urban areas. This was driven by investments exceeding $58 billion in 2023 alone and strong government-led initiatives supporting infrastructure and technology development.
Other notable countries leading in 5G base station deployment around that time include:
- The United States: With about $35 billion invested by major carriers like Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile. Deployment emphasized urban and rural coverage using C-band and millimeter-wave spectrums, though efforts have been more private-sector-driven, facing some regulatory challenges.
- Vietnam: By mid-2025, Vietnamese operators like Viettel, VNPT, and MobiFone had deployed around 11,000 5G base stations covering all provinces and roughly 26% of the population. Plans to install 20,000 stations in 2025 aimed to significantly boost speeds and coverage nationwide.
- Brazil: After a large multi-band spectrum auction in late 2021, Brazilian operators such as Telefónica Brasil (Vivo), Claro Brasil, and TIM Brasil aggressively deployed 5G. Vivo alone had deployed over 17,000 base stations by May 2025, achieving above 60% population coverage and millions of 5G subscriptions.
In summary, China led worldwide in 5G base station deployment by 2021, followed by significant efforts in the United States, Vietnam, and Brazil as emerging regional leaders putting substantial infrastructure in place. Data for exact base station counts in 2021 is limited, but these countries had the most ambitious and measurable deployments around that period.
Elsewhere, India is planning to introduce 5G services in the country, with Jio announcing plans to launch a 5G network by late 2021. The Japanese and South Korean markets have also embraced 5G, with Japan launching 5G mobile service in 2020 and South Korea rolling out 5G deployment in over 85 cities in January 2020.
The growth of 5G is expected to create opportunities for the healthcare and agricultural sectors to enhance their services. In Russia, Nokia (NOKIA.HE) and YADRO plan to form a joint venture to manufacture 4G and 5G telecom base stations.
The development of the 5G IoT ecosystem for communication services acts as a key factor influencing the global 5G base station market's growth. The market is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 60% during the forecast period from 2021 to 2027. Samsung has experienced a jump in demand for its base station equipment after the successful 5G commercialization in Korea.
China accounts for 70% of the world's 5G base stations, but the race to deploy 5G base stations is far from over, with many countries eager to catch up and reap the benefits of the new technology.
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The global 5G race sparks opportunities for the finance sector, with countries like China, the United States, Vietnam, and Brazil investing billions in infrastructure and technology for 5G deployment. As 5G proliferates, sectors such as healthcare and agriculture anticipate improvements.
Data-and-cloud-computing services are expected to expand with the development of the 5G IoT ecosystem, contributing to the global 5G base station market's projected 60% growth from 2021 to 2027.
