Airtel Africa nine-month 2025 results: accelerating growth and a big mobile money milestone
Airtel Africa has posted another strong quarter, pushing nine-month momentum up a gear and crossing two big markers in mobile money: more than 50 million customers and annualised total processed value over $200 billion. With data now the largest revenue driver and margins nudging 50%, the story here is one of scale, operating discipline and improving FX winds in key markets.
Here is what stood out – and why it matters for investors.
Key numbers at a glance
| Metric (9M to 31 Dec 2025) | Result | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $4,667m | +28.3% reported, +24.6% constant currency |
| EBITDA | $2,283m | +35.9%; margin 48.9% (up 272 bps) |
| Profit after tax | $586m | +136.6% |
| Basic EPS | 13.1 cents | vs 4.4 cents |
| Net cash from operating activities | $2,306m | +42.1% |
| Operating free cash flow | $1,680m | +37.2% |
| Capex | $603m | +32.2% |
| Net debt | $5,653m | Leverage 1.9x (from 2.4x) |
| Total customers | 179.4m | +10.0% |
| Mobile money customers | 52.0m | +17.3% |
Data is the engine, mobile money is scaling fast
Data is now the biggest contributor to group revenue and it is growing quickly. Data revenue rose 36.5% in constant currency, driven by a bigger user base and higher spend per user as smartphone penetration increased to 48.1% and average monthly usage climbed to 8.6GB from 6.9GB.
Mobile money continues to hit new heights. Customers reached 52.0 million, up 17.3%, while Q3’26 annualised total processed value topped $210bn. Revenue grew 29.4% in constant currency, helped by broader services and stronger digital adoption, with ARPU up 9.8% in constant currency. Note the reported EBITDA margin for mobile money dipped to 51.2% (down 195 bps in constant currency) due to intra-group agreement changes – this does not affect consolidated group margins.
Margins stepping up and operating discipline showing
Group EBITDA margin improved to 48.9% from 46.2%, with Q3’26 up again to 49.6%. That margin progression is important: it backs up the strategy of pushing data and mobile money while keeping a tight grip on costs. Operating profit rose 41.3% to $1,526m.
Profit after tax jumped to $586m, supported by higher operating profit and $99m of derivative and foreign exchange gains, a swing from losses in the prior period. EPS advanced to 13.1 cents, and EPS before exceptional items also came in at 13.1 cents, up from 6.2 cents.
Regional performance: Nigeria rebounds, East Africa and Francophone steady-strong
- Nigeria – revenue up 50.6% in constant currency (52.2% reported) to $1,126m; Q3 reported revenue up 71.0%. Data is the standout with constant currency data revenue up 65.4% and data usage per customer at 10.7GB per month. EBITDA margin rose to 56.7% from 48.5% as operating conditions and fuel costs stabilised.
- East Africa – revenue up 18.5% in constant currency (23.0% reported) to $2,214m and EBITDA margin at 53.2%. Data usage rose 48.1%, with 5G now enabled on over 2,000 sites across four markets.
- Francophone Africa – revenue up 17.0% in constant currency (20.8% reported) to $1,320m; data grew 37.1% in constant currency and 93.3% of sites are now on 4G. EBITDA margin improved to 44.1%.
Importantly, reported growth outpaced constant currency in all three regions due to appreciation in key currencies, including the naira in Q3’26.
Customer growth and ARPU: smarter phones, heavier data use
The total base expanded 10.0% to 179.4 million, with data customers up 14.6% to 81.8 million. Data ARPU climbed 16.6% in constant currency, reflecting rising digital engagement and the benefit of network investments. Smartphone penetration rose 3.9% to 48.1%, supporting higher usage and conversion to data bundles.
Group ARPU increased to $3.0, up 16.7% in reported terms. On voice, growth was steadier – constant currency revenue up 13.5% – as minutes held firm and the customer base expanded.
Capex, coverage and balance sheet: investing for growth, deleveraging achieved
Capex rose 32.2% to $603m as Airtel Africa rolled out roughly 2,500 new sites and extended fibre by around 4,000km to over 81,500km. Population coverage reached 81.7%, up 0.6 percentage points. This is the engine behind the data surge and better customer experience.
Leverage improved to 1.9x from 2.4x, with lease-adjusted leverage down to 0.7x from 1.1x, underpinned by EBITDA growth. Operating free cash flow rose 37.2% to $1,680m, and net cash from operations was $2,306m, up 42.1%.
Strategic moves: Starlink partnership, infrastructure sharing, and Airtel Money listing plan
The SpaceX partnership to launch Starlink Direct-to-Cell across 14 markets could open new service layers in hard-to-reach areas, subject to approvals. Infrastructure-sharing agreements with Vodacom (and earlier with MTN) should help accelerate rollout and improve capital efficiency in key markets.
The company remains on track to list Airtel Money in the first half of 2026, a potentially important catalyst for value discovery of the fintech arm. On capital returns, the second tranche of the up to $100m buyback is ongoing, with $36.2m executed by 31 December 2025.
What’s less rosy: finance costs, tax and FX still matter
- Finance costs excluding derivative and FX effects increased to $605m from $448m, reflecting lease liability interest after tower renewals and higher OpCo market debt. The reported total finance cost fell to $506m due to $99m of derivative and FX gains. The effective interest rate decreased to 11.2% from 13.2%.
- The total tax charge was $437m, with an effective tax rate of 39.6%. That remains above the weighted average statutory rate due to profit mix and withholding taxes.
- Currency remains a key sensitivity. A 1% USD move against OpCo currencies is estimated to impact revenue by $58m-$60m, EBITDA by $29m-$31m, and foreign exchange by $26m-$28m, with the largest exposure in Nigeria.
My take for investors
This is a robust update that blends volume growth with pricing, converts it into margin expansion, and backs it with hard investment in network and fibre. Data is doing the heavy lifting, mobile money is scaling healthily beyond 50 million users, and Nigeria’s recovery – on both operations and FX – is feeding through strongly to group numbers. Leverage is moving in the right direction and Q3 margins keep inching higher.
The watch-outs are not trivial: underlying finance costs are up, the effective tax rate is chunky, and FX is still the elephant in the room despite recent tailwinds. Capex is elevated, though clearly earning its keep via customer growth, usage and ARPU. Net-net, the direction of travel is positive. If Airtel Money’s planned listing lands on time and the Starlink and sharing deals unlock incremental coverage and capacity at sensible economics, there is more to come.
Bottom line: strong operational execution, improving balance sheet metrics and visible strategic catalysts make this a constructive set of results. Keep an eye on FX, finance costs and regulatory outcomes, but the growth runway across data and mobile money looks very much intact.
