Airtel Africa has reported a $248 million profit after tax for the nine-month period ending December 31, 2024.
This shows a significant growth when compared with the $2 million reported for the same period in 2023.
According to the company’s financial result released on Thursday, the profit after tax was boosted by a $94 million exceptional gain following the appreciation of the Nigerian naira and Tanzanian shilling.
Airtel Africa reported an EBITDA of $1.68 billion, reflecting an 11.9% decline in reported currency, with an EBITDA margin of 46.2%.
The company cited higher fuel costs and a lower contribution from Nigeria as key factors. However, cost efficiency initiatives led to an improvement in EBITDA margins from 45.3% in Q1’25 to 46.9% in Q3’25.
Revenue growth
The company reported a 20.4% increase in revenue (in constant currency) to $3.64 billion for the nine-month period driven by strong subscriber growth and increased mobile money adoption.
- However, revenue in reported currency declined by 5.8%, reflecting the impact of currency devaluations across its markets.
- The company’s total customer base grew 7.9% year-on-year (YoY) to 163.1 million, with data customers increasing 13.8% to 71.4 million.
- Data usage per customer surged by 32.3% to 6.9 GBs, supported by a 5.2% rise in smartphone penetration to 44.2%.
Mobile money and data fuel growth
Airtel Africa’s continued expansion of mobile financial services led to an 18.3% rise in mobile money subscribers, reaching 44.3 million.
The company recorded a 33.3% increase in mobile money transaction value with an annualized transaction volume of $146 billion.
Revenue from mobile services grew 18.8% in constant currency, driven by:
- Voice revenue growth of 9.8%
- Data revenue growth of 29.5%
- Mobile money revenue growth of 29.6%
Overall, data Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) rose by 15.0%, while mobile money ARPU grew by 11.8%, supporting 12.0% YoY growth in overall ARPUs.
CEO Outlook: Growth amid challenges
Commenting on the result, Sunil Taldar, CEO of Airtel Africa, highlighted the company’s continued strategic execution:
“We have delivered improved operational and financial performance, driven by our focus on customer experience, network expansion, and digital transformation.
“Demand for our services remains strong despite economic challenges, and our cost efficiency program has contributed to EBITDA margin expansion.”
Taldar also noted encouraging signs of currency stabilization in some markets and regulatory support from Nigeria’s Communications Commission (NCC) on tariff adjustments, which he believes will contribute to a more stable operating environment.
While currency volatility and macroeconomic challenges persist, Taldar said Airtel Africa remains committed to investing in network expansion and digital inclusion to drive long-term growth across its markets.
