Airtel Africa continued to widen its network footprint, deploying more than 2,350 new sites during the reporting period and laying over 4,000 kilometres of additional fibre.
Dar es Salaam. Airtel Africa has reported a solid half-year performance for the period ending September 30, 2025, marked by higher revenue, rising customer numbers and continued expansion of its data and mobile money services.
Operating across 14 African markets, the group posted a 24.5% increase in constant-currency revenue to $2.98 billion.
Data revenue grew by 37%, overtaking voice as the company’s largest income stream, while Airtel Money revenue rose by 30%.
The customer base expanded by 11% to nearly 174 million. Data users increased by 20% to 69.5 million, and Airtel Money customers climbed to 49.8 million.
The company links the growth to rising smartphone penetration—now at 46.8%—and an ongoing strategy of device financing and handset partnerships aimed at easing access to mobile internet services.
Airtel Africa continued to widen its network footprint, deploying more than 2,350 new sites during the reporting period and laying over 4,000 kilometres of additional fibre.
The group’s population coverage stands at 81.5%, with 98.5% of sites providing 4G services. The company is also evaluating 5G deployment in markets showing strong demand.
Operational results show improved efficiency. EBITDA rose 33.2% to $1.45 billion, with margins reaching 48.5%. Profit after tax increased sharply to $376 million, compared with $79 million a year earlier.
Analysts attribute the rise to tighter cost control, improved operating leverage and the effects of a major debt restructuring completed earlier in 2025.
Airtel Money remained a key contributor, processing $193 billion in transactions—an increase of almost 36% year on year. The platform continues to be used for payments, remittances, savings and micro-lending across the group’s markets.
Commenting on the performance, Airtel Africa CEO Sunil Taldar said the company intends to maintain its focus on broadening digital access.
“The growth we are seeing in data, smartphone adoption, and mobile money shows the scale of opportunity across Africa,” he said. “We remain focused on innovation, network investment and delivering value for our customers and communities.”
The results reflect wider changes within the African telecoms industry, where reliance on traditional voice services is declining as data usage and digital platforms gain prominence. The shift is reshaping communication, commerce and access to services across the continent.
Airtel Africa plans to step up investment across its markets and has increased its full-year capital expenditure guidance to up to $900 million. The company has also maintained interim dividends and continued its share buyback programme.
The group’s half-year performance points to sustained demand for data and mobile money services as digital connectivity becomes increasingly central to economic and social life in its markets.
