…As Nigeria remains biggest opportunity for growth
Airtel Africa will spin off and list its Airtel Money division by June 2026, according to Sunil Taldar Chief executive officer (CEO) in an interview accompanying its 2025 annual report released Tuesday.
Airtel Money is providing financial inclusion to more customers than ever before with over 17 billion transactions reaching $136bn in 2024/25.
“With regards to the IPO of Airtel Money, we’re making significant progress in our preparations and remain committed to this objective,” Taldar said in notes accompanying the annual report seen by MoneyCentral.
“However, we’re also mindful of evolving market conditions. Therefore, subject to these conditions, we anticipate a listing event in the first half of calendar 2026.”
Airtel Money transaction values grew by 32% in constant currency and its revenues reached $994m, including airtime recharges in Airtel Money.
“We’ve supported this growth from several angles, including enhancing customer experience through digital improvements that have driven increased adoption of MyAirtel app, increasing the use cases for Airtel Money as well as building the merchant and B2B ecosystems,” Taldar said.
Nigeria remains one of Airtel Africa’s biggest opportunities for growth, according to Chief executive officer (CEO) Taldar.
The Nigerian market saw continued economic volatility which impacted both the industry and Airtel’s customers.
“However, we’ve seen some encouraging macroeconomic signs in the past couple of quarters, with inflation trending down, improved foreign exchange availability and a relatively stable currency,” Taldar said.
“It is also worth highlighting the approvals we received in January 2025 for a tariff adjustment of up to 50%. This is a very positive development and will contribute significantly to a sustainable future for the industry as well as to the Nigerian Government’s agenda for digital transformation and a stronger economy.”
Taldar said Airtel had seen encouraging response from its customers following the tariff increase.
“The sustained demand reflects the essential nature of the services that we offer and gives us the platform to continue investing in the network, expanding coverage to communities across the country and delivering an enhanced product offering that meets customers’ evolving needs,” Taldar said.
Airtel’s customer base continued to grow in the financial year, reaching 166.1 million by year end and average revenue per user increased by 12.4% in constant currency. Airtel Africa reported revenue of $4.95 billion for the year ending March 2025.
As a result of its cash flow generation and robust capital structure, Airtel Board of directors continued to support its existing dividend policy of a mid- to-high single-digit annual growth in the dividend. In 2024/25 the Board returned a further $120m through a share buyback programme.
Airtel Africa is listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) and has a market capitalization of N8.68 trillion ($5.42 billion). The shares closed trading Tuesday at N2,372.50 and have a one-year return of 15.51%
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