MTN Nigeria has reported a strong third-quarter performance, delivering robust and broad-based revenue growth as momentum accelerated with double-digit increases across all key revenue segments.
The performance reflected a more favourable economic backdrop in the West African nation, the company said on Friday.
The Nigerian unit is the second of MTN Group’s African businesses to report earnings after MTN Ghana earlier this week.
For the nine months to end-September, MTN’s Nigerian unit has shown a remarkable turnaround, with profit after tax improving to 750.2bn naira ($519m) after a loss of 514.9bn naira a year ago.
Total subscribers increased 11% to 85.4-million while active data users rose 12.8% to 51.1-million. Service revenue was 57.5% higher at 3.7-trillion naira.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) grew 123% to 1.9-trillion naira.
“We are pleased to report that MTN Nigeria has restored its positive retained earnings and shareholders’ equity positions. This is a significant milestone that demonstrates strong operational momentum and disciplined execution,” CEO Karl Toriola said.
“Supported by a more favourable macroeconomic environment and price adjustments the outcome was driven by the delivery of our strategic and commercial initiatives, commitment to efficiency and prudent financial management,” he said.
MTN’s Nigerian business has in the past been affected by naira fluctuations, but in the period under review, macroeconomic conditions in Nigeria improved.
The naira trended stronger and there was improved foreign exchange liquidity and easing inflationary pressures.
The naira appreciated from 1,535/$ in December 2024 to 1,475/$ at the end of September, while headline inflation continued to steadily abate from 34.8% in December to 18.0% in September.
The Central Bank of Nigeria responded by reducing the monetary policy rate by 50 basis points to 27%, signalling the start of monetary policy easing — a positive development for business activity and investor confidence, the group said.
“As we enter the final quarter of 2025, we are encouraged by the supportive macroeconomic tailwinds, underpinned by improved forex liquidity, a relatively stronger naira and policy reforms that provide a foundation for sustained growth,” Toriola said.
The group expects continued resilience in service revenue, supported by robust demand and user base growth.
“We will continue to invest in home broadband, with an emphasis on fibre-to-the-home acceleration to capture rising demand for high-speed connectivity. This is complemented by targeted investments in network capacity and quality to support growth across consumer and enterprise segments,” he said.
“In fintech, we aim to sustain the recovery by growing active wallets, expanding transaction volumes and accelerating advanced services. We are also developing new payment use cases to enhance wallet stickiness and drive recurring usage, reinforcing our commitment to financial inclusion,” he said.
The company remained on track to deliver on its full single-year guidance, including service revenue growth of at least low-50% and ebitda margin of at least low-50%, underpinned by disciplined execution and cost efficiency.
“While some macro uncertainties may remain we are excited by the market’s strong fundamentals and the growth opportunities these present for us,” Toriola said.
Earlier last week MTN Ghana reported profit after tax for the nine-month period increased 45.9% to 5.5bn cedis, as that country’s economy also remained relatively stable despite some weakening of the local currency.
In the past, MTN Group has suffered the effects of currency devaluations in several of its key markets.
MTN Group’s share price closed up 1.65% at R172.93 on Friday, taking its year-to-date gains to 86.7%.
mackenziej@arena.africa
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