Highlights
- Total customer base grew by 9.0% to 152.7 million, with a 17.8% increase in data customers to 64.4 million and a 20.8% increase in data usage per customer.
- The company posted an impressive 20% growth in mobile money subscribers. Transaction value increase of 38.2% in constant currency with annual transaction value of over $112bn in reported currency.
- Revenue in constant currency grew by 20.9% with growth accelerating to 23.1% in Q4’24.
- There has been continued network investment to support an enhanced customer experience and drive increased 4G coverage. 95% of sites now 4G operational, facilitating a 42.3% increase in 4G customers over the year.
Financial performance
The company posted a loss $89m after tax, primarily impacted by significant foreign exchange headwinds, resulting in a $549m exceptional loss net of tax following the Nigerian naira devaluation in June 2023 and Q4’24, and the Malawian kwacha devaluation in November 2023.
Revenue in constant currency grew by 20.9% with growth accelerating to 23.1% in Q4’24. Nigerian constant currency revenue growth accelerated to 34.2% in Q4’24 despite the challenging backdrop. Reported currency revenues declined by 5.3% to $4,979m reflecting the impact of currency devaluation, particularly in Nigeria.
However, mobile services revenue grew by 19.4% in constant currency, driven by voice revenue growth of 11.9% and data revenue growth of 29.2%. Mobile Money revenue grew by 32.8% in constant currency, with a continued strong performance in East Africa.
“The consistent deployment of our ‘Win with’ strategy supported the acceleration in constant currency revenue growth over the recent quarters which has reduced the impact of currency headwinds faced across most of our markets.” – Olusegun Ogunsanya, Chief Executive Officer
Capital allocation
The Board has approved a share buyback programme of up to $100m, over a period of up to 12 months. On 1 March 2024, the company announced the commencement of the first tranche of this buyback up to a maximum of $50m. During March 2024, the company purchased 7.4 million shares for a total consideration of $9m.
Furthemore, the Board has recommended a final dividend of 3.57 cents per share, making the total dividend for FY24 5.95 cents per share.
According to Airtel Africa CEO, Olusegun Ogunsanya, the improved revenue figures have revealed the untapped potential in the African markets, and the resilience of its products against inflationary pressure to maintain customer support.
He further emphasized on the importance of facilitating the growth as fundamental to the telco’s performance. One of the key improvements would include to de-risking the balance sheet and capital allocation priorities to further reduce the risks posed by currency de-valuation.
Other key initiatives include the reduction of US dollar debt across the business and the ac-
cumulation and to focus on reducing the exposure to currency volatility.
