MTN Group subscribers spiked by 4.7% to hit 296.8m, records 5.3% increase in operating profit for Q1 2025

African telecom giant, MTN Group, has reported a 5.3 per cent increase in its operating profit margin based on earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA). Its total subscriber base also increased by 4.7 per cent to 296.8 million across its 16 markets for the Q1 ending March 2025.

According to the Group’s financial report on Monday, its margin from EBITDA climbed to 44.1 per cent, attributed to a significant spike in operational activities, described as “an encouraging acceleration in operational momentum.”

In a stand-out performance, MTN said its service revenue growth rose by 19.8 per cent in constant currency terms, attributed to a good performance in MTN’s important West African markets of Nigeria and Ghana.

“MTN reported a robust performance for Q1 2025, anchored in the continued strong execution of our strategic and operational priorities, and buoyed by improved macroeconomic conditions in key markets. We invested R7.5-billion (excluding leases) of capex in our networks and platforms in support of our commercial initiatives, to sustain the encouraging strong growth in our business,” said group CEO Ralph Mupita in a statement.

On other key performance indicators, MTN Group service revenue increased by 10.4 per cent, accounting for the impact of pro forma adjustments. Data revenue climbed by 17.9 per cent while active data subscribers during the period are now 161.7 million, representing a 9.1 per cent increase. Voice revenue also dropped by 0.1 per cent.

Furthermore, MTN witnessed a spike in internet users in Q1 as data traffic increased by 30.4 per cent to 5.7 exabytes. On MTN MoMo (fintech), the revenue climbed by 17.2 per cent while monthly active users increased by 1.1 per cent to 62.2 million.

MTN Nigeria and South Africa 

MTN recorded a strong performance in Nigeria after reporting a profit after tax of ₦133.7 billion ($102.85 million) in Q1 2025, marking a significant recovery from a ₦392.7 billion loss in the same period last year. On another encouraging performance, it witnessed a 41 per cent year-on-year revenue increase to ₦1.06 trillion, driven by tariff hikes, reduced foreign exchange (FX) losses, and growth in its digital and fintech sectors.

In the report released two weeks ago, the market stabilised its subscriber base at over 84 million, recovering from losses in 2024 due to the NIN-SIM linkage enforcement. Active data users grew by 12 per cent year-on-year, driven by increased adoption of 4G and 5G networks.

“Building on the momentum from Q4 2024, Q1 results place MTN Nigeria firmly on the path to restoring profitability and achieving a positive net asset position within the current financial year, while increasing investments to improve network and service quality,” it said.

In addition, service revenue for the quarter rose by 32.5 per cent to ₦752.98 billion ($579.22 million), while total revenue reached ₦1.06 trillion. EBITDA increased by 66 per cent, and operating profit surged by 97 per cent, showing improved operational efficiency.

In its South African operation, the largest operating subsidiary outside Nigeria, the market continued to navigate competitive challenges, especially in prepaid services.

Its service revenue went up by 2.6 per cent, data revenue increased by 3.9 per cent, while outgoing voice revenue declined by 3.2 per cent. Also, total subscribers grew by 5.6 per cent to 39.2 million, with post-paid customers up by 6.7 per cent to 4.4 million, attributed to a stronger uptake of integrated voice and data plans, as well as home propositions.

Total data revenue for the period saw an encouraging growth of 3.9 per cent and contributed 48.3 per cent to MTN South Africa’s total service revenue, from 47.7 per cent a year ago. The growth was also driven by a 6.7 per cent increase in active data subscribers to 21.8 million, with a 19.3 per cent rise in data traffic.

Data usage per active prepaid data subscriber grew to nearly 3.8GB/month, up by 14.8 per cent year-on-year, while an average active post-paid data subscriber’s usage increased to 23.7GB/month, with the bulk of the growth attributed to fixed-wireless access.

“The market sustained a solid operational and commercial performance in Q1. While consumers benefited from slightly improved spending power, customer behaviour within telecoms spend remained value-seeking and dynamic in the context of constrained economic growth and heightened competition in the sector,” the group said.

For MTN South Africa, the group noted that the focus remains on recovering the prepaid performance along with the business’s profitability and free cash flow profile.