Airtel Africa plc has announced exceptional results for the half-year ending September 30, 2025, revealing strong growth across its business, primarily driven by the explosive expansion of its data and mobile money services.
The pan-African telecom, operating in 14 countries, reported a robust 24.5% increase in constant currency revenue, reaching $2.98 billion. This growth was underpinned by a significant milestone: data revenue ($1.16 billion) has officially surpassed voice revenue for the first time, highlighting a successful strategic shift.
However, the standout performer remains its fintech arm, Airtel Money, which is rapidly advancing the company’s financial inclusion goals. The service saw its customer base surge by 20% to 49.8 million users.
This expanding user base is increasingly active. Annualised total processed value (TPV) for the second quarter surpassed $193 billion, a staggering 35.9% increase year-on-year, putting the platform on a clear trajectory to break the $200 billion mark. This intense engagement contributed to an 11% rise in constant currency Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) from the service.
Airtel Africa confirmed last month that preparations for the highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) of its mobile money division remain firmly on course for a listing in the first half of 2026.
These results mark the first major half-year report under the leadership of CEO Sunil Taldar, who took the helm in July 2024. Taldar attributed the strong performance to a relentless focus on customer-centric digital innovation.
“Our strategy has been focussed on providing a superior customer experience, and the strength of these results is testament to the initiatives that we have been implementing across the business,” said Taldar.
He pointed to the growing adoption of the MyAirtel app as a key tool for deepening customer engagement and simplifying the user journey.
Beyond its fintech arm, Airtel’s core telecommunications business showed impressive growth. The group’s total customer base grew by 11% to 173.8 million, with data customers climbing 18.4% to 78.1 million. This robust performance, combined with cost efficiencies, helped expand the group’s EBITDA margin to 49% in the second quarter.
Taldar emphasized that the company is simultaneously scaling its network to meet future demand, building capacity to facilitate both digital and financial inclusion. Recent investments include new major data center hubs in key markets like Nigeria and Kenya.
The CEO highlighted smartphone penetration, which rose to 46.8%, as a critical indicator of the market’s potential.
“The increase in smartphone penetration… reflects the substantial demand for data services across our markets but also highlights the scale of the opportunity to further develop the digital economy,” Taldar stated.
This figure, while a sign of success, underscores that more than half of the company’s potential market is yet to be fully captured. This untapped potential, coupled with the proven success of its mobile money platform, has given the company the confidence to increase its capital expenditure guidance for the full fiscal year to between $875 million and $900 million.
As Airtel Africa invests heavily in its network infrastructure, all eyes will be on the 2026 IPO, which investors see as a move to unlock the full value of its dominant fintech ecosystem.
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