Airtel Sets Deadline for Nigerian Sale of Airtel Money Shares

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  Airtel Africa intends to launch Airtel Money as part of an Initial Public Offering during the first half of 2026.
  
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  The company’s top leader, Sunil Taldar, revealed this when the telecommunications firm published its financial statement.
  
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  In the meantime, the firm has finalized agreements to collaborate with SpaceX in order to utilize Starlink for enhancing internet services across Africa.
  

Pascal Oparada from Farovint.ng has covered technology, energy, stocks, investments, and economic matters for more than ten years.

Airtel Africa has announced that significant strides have been made in readying itself for the Airtel Money Initial Public Offering (IPO). The company continues to express its dedication to this initiative.

Following the release of the company’s Q1 2025 financial statements, the telco’s CEO, Sunil Taldar, made this announcement.

Airtel targets an IPO for Airtel Money

Airtel Money is a mobile money service provided by Airtel, enabling customers to make digital payments, transfer funds, and handle their accounts through smartphones.

Taldar mentioned that Airtel Africa acknowledges current market conditions and expects an initial public offering even within the first six months of 2026.

The telecommunications company has kept increasing its investment in the Airtel Money agent network throughout various African markets, enhancing services and broadening applications. This strategic move has led to a significant rise of 17.3%, bringing the total number of mobile money subscribers to 44.6 million, along with an 11.4% expansion when adjusted for currency exchange rates.

The firm claims it is speeding up both growth and consecutive margin improvement, which bolsters its robust operational and financial capabilities.

Airtel Africa is making significant progress.

According to a BusinessDay report, the firm saw an 8.7% growth in its customer base reaching 166.1 million, emphasizing data incorporation, where smartphone usage climbed by 4.3%, totaling 44.8 million users.

The number of data customers increased by 14.1%, reaching 73.4 million, while the data usage per user climbed by 30.4% to 7.0 GB. This contributed to a data growth of 15.4% when adjusted for constant currency.

During the last quarter of 2025, the transaction value increased by 34% when adjusted for currency, reaching an annual figure of $145 billion.

The telecommunications company stated that their emphasis on enhancing customer experience stemmed from consistent investments in their network infrastructure, including the deployment of 2,583 new locations and an additional 3,300 kilometers of fiber optic cables.

Airtel’s revenue grows

The firm’s income increased by 21.1% when adjusted for constant currency yet fell by 0.5% in reported figures because of depreciations throughout its operating regions.

Effective implementation and modifications in tariffs in Nigeria played a key role in fostering additional growth, leading to a rise in revenues during the last quarter of 2024 to 23.2% when measured at constant currency rates, and to 17.8% based on reported currency values.

Throughout its network, Airtel saw a 19.6% increase in mobile service revenues when adjusted for constant currency, thanks to a 10.6% rise in voice revenue and a 30.5% surge in data revenue.

The revenue from mobile money increased by 29.9% when adjusted for currency exchange rates.

In Q1 2025, the firm experienced a decline of 5.1% in reported currency for EBITDA, amounting to $2.304 billion. The core EBITDA margin stood at 46.5%, compared to 48.8% during the same period last year, primarily due to higher fuel costs and decreased contributions from Nigeria.

The firm’s earnings after taxation amounted to $328 million, which represents an improvement from a previous deficit of $89 million.

Airtel plans to collaborate with Starlink.

This development follows an agreement between Airtel Africa and SpaceX, the space exploration firm led by entrepreneur Elon Musk, aimed at providing Starlink’s high-speed internet services to Airtel’s subscribers across Africa, such as those based in Nigeria.

Through this new collaboration, Airtel plans to utilize Starlink’s satellite services to enhance connectivity for enterprises, businesses, and various social groups, particularly in rural regions.

Taldar stated that the upcoming generation of satellite connections will guarantee robust and cost-effective voice and data services for everyone, including individuals, businesses, and communities, particularly in far-flung areas where internet availability is currently limited.

MTN and Airtel ink agreement for shared network infrastructure

Previously reported by Farovint.ng, both MTN Group and Airtel Africa have entered into a fresh agreement for shared network infrastructure aimed at enhancing service availability across two nations.

This agreement will help both telecommunications companies conserve substantial funds intended for developing mobile networks, all while expanding their service reach.

On Wednesday, March 26, both parties issued formal announcements regarding the new agreement set to commence in Nigeria and Uganda.