Joy Agwunobi
Airtel Africa Plc has achieved a solid financial performance for the half-year period ended 30 September 2025, sustaining strong momentum in its digital-led strategy as data revenue surpassed voice for the first time across the group’s 14 operating markets.
A review of the half-year financial statement filed with the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) indicated that total revenue rose to $2.982m, representing 24.5 percent growth in constant currency and 25.8 percent in reported currency. The company attributed the improvement to continued expansion in mobile internet usage, increasing adoption of Airtel Money services, and pricing reforms executed in Nigeria and Francophone Africa.
The telecom operator disclosed that currency appreciation across key markets positively impacted headline performance, noting that reported currency revenue growth reached 29.1 percent in the second quarter of FY’26 compared to 24.2 percent growth in constant currency during the same period.
The group stated that the consistent execution of its commercial and network strategies, supported by sustained tariff adjustments in its largest market (Nigeria), played a critical role in lifting revenue contributions from data and financial inclusion services.
Mobile services fuel topline acceleration
Mobile services revenue surged 23.1 percent in constant currency, driven by a 37.0 percent rise in data revenue and 13.2 percent growth in voice revenue. Data consumption continues to grow as smartphone ownership expands and network capacity improves across its service regions.
Airtel Money remained a key growth pillar, with mobile money revenue up 30.2 percent in constant currency on the back of scale expansion and enhanced customer engagement.
The group’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) advanced 33.2 percent to $1.447m, with EBITDA margin strengthening to 48.5 percent from 45.8 percent in the corresponding period of the previous year. During Q2’26 alone, EBITDA margin rose further to 49.0 percent from 46.4 percent a year earlier, reflecting gains from operational efficiency and cost-optimisation programmes.
Profit after tax improved to $376 million, compared with $79 million in the prior period. Airtel Africa explained that last year’s earnings were heavily impacted by derivative and foreign exchange losses, especially in Nigeria, whereas the current period benefitted from an estimated $90 million net gain driven by naira appreciation in Q2’26 and positive currency movements in the Central African franc during Q1’26.
Capital expenditure for the period stood at $318 million, consistent with the prior year. However, the group has raised its capex guidance for FY’26 to a range of $875 million to $900 million as it accelerates investment to capture emerging opportunities in connectivity and digital services.
Customer additions strengthen commercial outlook
Airtel Africa continued to expand its subscriber base, with total customers increasing 11 percent year-on-year to 173.8 million. The number of data users grew faster at 18.4 percent, rising to 78.1 million, alongside increased smartphone penetration which reached 46.8 percent during the period.
The company highlighted a 16.8 percent rise in data ARPU (average revenue per user) in constant currency, supported by a 45 percent jump in network-wide data traffic. The MyAirtel mobile app, expanded digital offerings and targeted capital investments have contributed to improved user experience and deeper customer engagement, the company noted.
Financial inclusion remained a strategic priority, with Airtel Money growing its customer base by 20 percent to 49.8 million. Annualised total transaction value for Q2’26 exceeded $193 billion, an increase of 35.9%, with ARPU up 11 percent in constant currency due to higher engagement levels and product innovation.
Airtel Africa confirmed ongoing investment in network infrastructure, including the deployment of more than 2,350 new sites, bringing total sites to over 38,300, alongside a 4,000-kilometre expansion of its fibre network to more than 81,000 kilometres. The upgrades increased population coverage to 81.5%, with 98.5% of all sites now 4G-enabled.
IPO plans still on course
Speaking on the company’s financial performance, Sunil Taldar, chief executive officer of Airtel Africa, said the results underscore accelerating progress in its digital-focused transformation.
“Our strategy has been focused on providing a superior customer experience and the strength of these results is testament to the initiatives that we have been implementing across the business,” Taldar said.
He expressed confidence that rising smartphone penetration, strong Airtel Money adoption and expanding digital ecosystems across its markets will continue to unlock growth.
Taldar also reaffirmed that preparations for the company’s planned initial public offering (IPO) remain on schedule for the first half of 2026.
“Our strong financial performance gives us the confidence to increase our capex guidance for this financial year to between $875 million and $900 million, as we accelerate our investments to capture the full potential across our markets and deliver long-term value for all stakeholders,” he added.
