Airtel Africa profit tops $800 million as data, mobile money growth accelerates

Airtel Africa, the telecommunications and mobile money giant chaired by Indian billionaire Sunil Bharti Mittal, posted stronger-than-expected earnings for the financial year ended March 31, 2026, as rising demand for data and digital financial services helped profit climb above $800 million.

The London- and Lagos-listed telecoms operator said profit after tax rose 147.4 percent to $813 million in the 2026 financial year, up from $328 million a year earlier. The sharp increase reflects stronger operating performance across its core markets as well as a turnaround in derivative and foreign exchange movements.

The company reported derivative and foreign exchange gains of $127 million during the period, compared with losses of $179 million in the previous year. Basic earnings per share rose to $0.186 from $0.06, supported by higher operating profit and improved currency conditions in several markets.

Revenue jumps 29.5 percent, subscribers hit record

Revenue growth also gathered pace during the year as Airtel Africa benefited from higher customer spending on data services and continued expansion in mobile money. Reported revenue increased 29.5 percent to $6.41 billion, compared with $4.95 billion in the prior year.

The growth was supported in part by tariff adjustments in Nigeria, one of the group’s biggest markets, alongside a steady rise in smartphone adoption and digital usage across its African operations. Airtel Africa’s customer base grew 10.5 percent to 183.5 million subscribers, marking the company’s largest annual customer additions on record.

Data consumption continued to rise as more users relied on mobile internet services for streaming, payments, messaging and business activity. Average data usage per customer increased to 8.9 gigabytes per month from 7 gigabytes a year earlier. The increase helped drive 16.2 percent growth in constant-currency data average revenue per user.

Airtel Money volume reaches $215 billion

Mobile money remained another major growth driver for the group. Airtel Money expanded its customer base by 21.3 percent to 54.1 million users as digital payment adoption accelerated across several African markets. 

The unit, which has previously been linked to plans for a public listing that could value the business at about $10 billion, also recorded a sharp rise in transaction volumes. Annualized total processed value rose 49 percent to $215 billion in reported currency during the fourth quarter of the financial year. 

Broader use of digital payment services and stronger customer activity helped lift Airtel Money’s constant-currency average revenue per user by 8.6 percent, underlining the growing role mobile financial services now play across the company’s operations. 

Airtel Africa CEO Sunil Taldar said the company delivered strong operating and financial performance during the year as demand for telecommunications and digital financial services continued to grow across its markets. He added that investments in digital tools and artificial intelligence helped improve efficiency and customer service, including network optimization, faster onboarding processes and wider adoption of the myAirtel application.

Airtel Africa’s balance sheet expands

Airtel Africa operates in 14 countries across sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Madagascar. The company provides mobile voice, data and digital financial services to millions of users across the continent.

Its stronger earnings performance also lifted the company’s balance sheet. Total assets increased from $12.02 billion at the end of March 2025 to $13.96 billion by March 2026, while total equity rose from $2.77 billion to $3.48 billion. Reserves and surplus more than doubled to $1.32 billion from $651 million.

Following the earnings growth, Airtel Africa’s board recommended a final dividend of $0.043 per share. That brings the total dividend for the full year to $0.071 per share, representing a 9.2 percent increase from the previous year.