Airtel Africa Data Revenues Surpass Voice, Mobile Money Nears $200 Billion

Airtel Africa has crossed a major turning point in its growth story. For the first time, the company’s data revenues have overtaken voice, a clear sign of how quickly digital adoption is spreading across the continent. The numbers, announced in its half-year results to September 2025, show a business that is shifting gears from being just a telecom operator to a digital and financial services player.

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Data Takes the Lead

Total revenues for the six months rose 25.8% in reported currency to $2.98 billion. The standout driver was data, which jumped 37% in constant currency to $1.16 billion higher than voice revenue at $1.1 billion. The company added 12 million new data customers in a year, taking the base to 78.1 million. Smartphone penetration also improved, reaching almost 47%. Average usage climbed to 8.2 GB per user every month, up by nearly a quarter compared with last year.

Airtel Money Keeps Growing

Alongside data, Airtel’s mobile money business has become a serious growth engine. The customer base is now close to 50 million, up 20% year-on-year. In the September quarter, the platform processed transactions worth an annualised $193 billion a jump of 35.9%. From virtual cards to savings and loan products, new services are pulling in more engagement and pushing mobile money’s share of group revenue past 20%.

Stronger Bottom Line

The focus on digital has lifted profits as well. EBITDA rose by a third to $1.45 billion, with margins expanding to 48.5%. In the latest quarter, margins nudged 49%, underlining how scale and efficiency are working together. Profit after tax came in at $376 million, a big leap from $79 million in the same period last year. Basic earnings per share rose to 8.3 cents compared to just 0.8 cents previously.