Nigeria’s leading telecoms operator, MTN Nigeria has announced a N400.44bn loss after tax for the year ended December 31, 2024. The loss represents a 123 per cent increase from the N137.02bn loss recorded the previous year.
While disclosing the financial statement in its audited report released on Thursday, the mobile network attributed the decline in its earnings to naira devaluation coupled with foreign exchange losses.
MTN Nigeria added that the sharp depreciation of the naira significantly impacted its foreign exchange exposure, with forex losses surging to N925bn from N740bn in 2023. Therein, the naira depreciated to N1,535/$ by the end of 2024 from N907/$1 as of December 31, 2023.
Amidst the delimiting factors, the mobile network operator with over 80 million customers noted that its revenue rose by 36 per cent to N3.36tn in 2024, up from N2.47tn in the previous year. The result was driven by continued demand for data and digital services.
“Forex losses arising from the revaluation of foreign currency-denominated obligations resulted in a loss after tax of N400.4bn (2023: N137 billion loss), albeit with a positive result in Q4 (PAT of N114.5bn). Consequently, we reported negative retained earnings of N607.5bn (December 2023: negative N208bn), which was an improvement from the June 2024 balance of N727.2bn,” part of the report reads.
In addition to its positive trend, MTN Nigeria recorded N778.2bn in operating profit (profits from the company’s core business activities). The figure represents a marginal increase of 0.46 per cent from N774.6bn in 2023. Negatively, the gains were swallowed by forex losses.
While rendering his comments on the financial statement, MTN Nigeria CEO, Karl Toriola expressed that the company is encouraged by the resilience of its business in FY 2024 which reflects its strong commitment to driving growth and managing costs.
“Despite facing significant macroeconomic headwinds, including record-high inflation, as well as ongoing currency and energy price volatility, we remained focused on executing our strategy and creating long-term value for our stakeholders,” he added.
Toriola extends his gratitude for the recent 50 per cent telecom tariff hike approval by the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC). “We are grateful to the authorities for the recent approval of tariff adjustments, which are essential for our industry’s sustainability and crucial for addressing our negative capital position.”
Also Read: MTN to report 59% decline in 2024 full-year earnings, blames forex losses and naira depreciation.
MTN in dark days
The loss after tax report by the telecoms giant Nigerian subsidiary comes a day after the parent company claimed that it will report a significant decline in its full-year headline earnings per share (HEPS), which will be published in March.
MTN Group, who affixed the drop to deteriorating foreign exchange impacts on its profit amidst a good operational performance, said its HEPS for the year ending December 31, 2024, will decline by 59 per cent to 79 per cent while earnings per share will rise by more than 100 per cent.
Providing more updates on its HEPS, the group expressed that the financial measure was negatively impacted by non-operational items of some -$o.39/share, including hyperinflation adjustments. Others include forex losses of -$0.32, Nigerian naira depreciation impact of -$0.22, deferred tax charge, and other non-operational items.
Like its Nigerian subsidiary, the company acknowledges the approval of the tariff hike in Nigeria as a significant milestone in ensuring the long-term sustainability of its business and the telecoms industry in the country.
“MTN Nigeria has started to implement the tariff adjustments, which represent an important step towards addressing the impacts of the prevailing economic challenges on the operation,” the group added.
The group also noted that its financial results remained affected by several external factors including the negative impact of local currency devaluation in FY24, particularly the naira, against the US dollar on its results. This included both translation effects and forex losses in its financials.
On the bank of the naira depreciation and economic fluctuation which cut across all boards, Nigerian mobile network operators including Airtel Nigeria and Globacom will look to improve their negative record books come the year ending 2025.
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