Airtel Africa has staged a remarkable comeback in its financial performance, reporting a pre-tax profit of $661 million for the financial year ended March 31, 2025. This marks a significant turnaround from the $63 million pre-tax loss recorded in the previous year. Profit after tax also swung back into positive territory, rising to $328 million from a loss of $89 million in 2024. The recovery comes despite the lingering effects of currency devaluations, particularly in Nigeria, which had heavily impacted the company’s bottom line last year.
The Group’s revenue reached $4.96 billion, showing a robust 21.1 per cent growth in constant currency. However, in reported terms, revenue dipped slightly by 0.5 per cent, dragged down by sharp currency devaluations in several markets, notably Nigeria, Malawi, and Zambia. The Nigerian naira, for instance, depreciated significantly from an average of N781/$ to N1,531/$, exerting pressure on reported figures.
Despite these headwinds, the company’s operational fundamentals remained strong. The fourth quarter of the financial year was particularly impressive, with revenue growth of 23.2 per cent in constant currency and 17.8 per cent in reported currency, largely due to easing currency pressures and a tariff adjustment in Nigeria.
Commenting on the results, Sunil Taldar, Chief Executive Officer of Airtel Africa, expressed confidence in the company’s strategy and market positioning. “We have reported another strong operating performance as our strategy continues to deliver against the significant opportunity that exists across our markets,” he said. “An improving operating environment and focused execution contributed to strong momentum in our financial results, with constant currency revenue growth peaking at 23.2 per cent in Q4. Part of this acceleration in the last quarter has also been driven by the Nigerian tariff adjustment.”
The company’s customer base grew by 8.7 per cent to 166.1 million users, demonstrating solid market penetration. Data subscribers surged by 14.1 per cent to 73.4 million, while average data usage per customer increased by 30.4 per cent to 7.0GB. This rise in data consumption boosted average revenue per user (ARPU) for data services by 15.4 per cent in constant currency. Airtel Africa’s mobile money segment also continued its expansion, with subscriber numbers hitting 44.6 million, affirming the Group’s growing presence in the digital financial services space.
Smartphone penetration rose by 4.3 percentage points to 44.8 per cent, further fueling digital engagement across the network. Voice services remained the company’s largest revenue contributor at 39.64 per cent, closely followed by data services at 36.41 per cent. The narrowing gap between the two segments reflects a broader industry shift toward data-driven growth, supported by increased smartphone adoption and internet usage.
On the profitability front, underlying EBITDA rose by 18.1 per cent in constant currency, although the Group’s reported EBITDA margin declined by 228 basis points to 46.5 per cent. This was mainly due to the steep depreciation of the naira and increased fuel costs in Nigeria. Nevertheless, the company’s cost-efficiency efforts began to yield results, with margins improving quarter-on-quarter, from 45.3 per cent in Q1 to 47.3 per cent in Q4.
A major driver of the return to profitability was the 51.7 per cent reduction in net finance costs, which fell from $1.703 billion in 2024 to $822 million in 2025. Of this, $179 million was related to derivative and foreign exchange losses, including $87 million classified as exceptional items. The remainder of the finance costs increased from $444 million to $643 million, largely due to higher local borrowing costs and tower contract renewals.
In a strategic move to strengthen its balance sheet, Airtel Africa repaid $702 million in U.S. dollar-denominated debt and increased its local currency operating company (OpCo) debt to 93 per cent up from 83 per cent. The Group also introduced a new lease-adjusted leverage metric, which rose from 0.7x to 1.0x, accounting for currency devaluation and lease-related liabilities.
Airtel Africa’s position on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) remains formidable. As of May 8, 2025, the company was the most valuable listed stock with a market capitalization of N8.11 trillion. Its share price stood at N2,156.90, reflecting a stable year-to-date performance.
