MTN Group’s fintech business recorded strong growth in the first half of 2026, with the value of transactions on its platforms rising by more than a third to $330 billion as active Mobile Money users increased to 70.8 million.
The telecommunications group disclosed this in its first-half 2026 results, attributing the growth to rising demand for secure and convenient digital financial services across its markets.
Transaction volumes increased 17 per cent to 13 billion during the six-month period, while the number of active fintech agents rose to 1.4 million.
The number of active fintech merchants also increased by more than 18 per cent to 2.3 million, with advanced fintech services driving overall revenue growth in the business.
The performance comes as digital financial services continue to expand across MTN’s markets, supported by increasing smartphone adoption, mobile connectivity and demand for digital payments and other financial services.
MTN said underlying demand for its services remained strong during the period, with the group serving 317.7 million customers across 19 markets as of June 30, 2026.
More than 179 million of its customers were active data users, contributing to a nearly 23 per cent increase in traffic carried across MTN’s networks to 14.3 petabytes.
Ralph Mupita, the group president and chief executive Officer, said the company’s first-half performance reflected strong commercial momentum across its markets, which translated into higher earnings, cash flow and returns.
The group said increasing digital adoption and financial inclusion across Africa continued to support the long-term outlook for its connectivity, fintech and digital infrastructure businesses.
MTN’s overall service revenue rose 17.5 per cent in constant-currency terms to R115 billion in the first half, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation before once-off items increased by almost a quarter to R56 billion.
The company said growth was driven by strong performances from markets including Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon.
