MTN Rwanda’s profit after tax surge by 160% in H1’25, subscriber base now 7.8M

MTN Rwanda has reported that its subscriber base increased by 3.5% year-on-year (YoY) to 7.8 million during the first half of 2025, with a Profit After Tax (PAT) of Rwf 6.3 billion. This represents a 159.6% increase from the H1 2024 loss after tax of Rwf 10.5 billion.

In the financial statement spanning January to June released, the telecom provider, described the period as a huge turnaround compared to H1 2024, and the positive momentum reflects its disciplined execution of commercial strategy and a sharp focus on driving expense efficiencies across the company.

“MTN Rwanda delivered a strong financial turnaround in H1 2025, underpinned by disciplined execution, agile commercial decision-making, and a laser focus on cost optimisation. Through value-driven capital allocation and strategic expense efficiencies, we enhanced operational productivity and strengthened returns on investment,” said MTN Rwanda Chief Executive Officer, Monzer Ali.

During the period in review, MTN Rwanda saw an 11.4% YoY increase in total revenue from Rwf 124.6 billion to Rwf 138.8 billion. This was attributed to a strong service revenue of Rwf 137.4 billion, 13.1% from the Rwf 121.5 billion recorded in H1 2024. 

The company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 43.7% YoY to Rwf 56 billion, with an EBITDA margin of 40.4%. This was driven by robust momentum in data and MoMo revenue as well as the impact of realised expense efficiencies during the first half.  

MTN Rwanda stressed that its commitment to delivering a compelling customer value proposition, combined with targeted network investments and tighter cost controls, has resulted in margin expansion, growth and a return to profitability. 

“This performance reinforces our confidence in the sustainability of our efficiency-led strategy,” Monzer Ali said. 

During the period, its subscriber base grew by 3.5% to 7.8 million. However, Q1 recorded a marginal decline of 20k subscribers, but saw a strong recovery in Q2, with a net addition of 153k subscribers. 

MTN Rwanda’s operational performance is also supported by the Rwanda economy’s growth of 7.8% in the first quarter of 2025, where the ICT sector saw an 18% YoY, according to the National Institute of Statistics Rwanda (NISR). Rwanda’s inflation rate averaged 5.7% in the first half, compared to 7.7% in H1 2024, reflecting a moderation in inflationary pressures. 

Also Read: MTN Uganda’s profit after tax drops by 9.7%, subscribers increased to 22.8M in H1’25

MTN Rwanda’s service revenue for H1 2025

MTN Rwanda’s return to profitability is strongly attributed to its service revenue, which grew by 13.1% YoY to Rwf 137.4 billion. This was supported by strong double-digit growth in our fintech and data segments.

Active data subscribers increased by 1.9% YoY to 2.4 million, and active Mobile Money (MoMo) users increased by 9.1% YoY to 5.6 million. 

MTN Rwanda saw a data revenue growth of 10.1% YoY to Rwf 23.3 billion from Rwf 21.2 billion, driven by data traffic growth of 42.1%. According to the company, the growth was further boosted by a targeted 3G-to-4G SIM migration campaign, which resulted in enhanced speeds and service quality, and helped to drive 4G users up by 34.9% YoY to 1.3 million. Smartphone penetration saw a growth of 41.5%.

MoMo delivered another strong revenue growth of 29.1% YoY to Rwf 68.6 billion from Rwf 53.1 billion, attributed to a robust expansion in advanced services revenue (up 41.0%). MoMo’s contribution to overall service revenue increased to 49.9% (43.7% in H1’24) while data revenue accounted for 17.0% of total service revenue (17.4% in H1’24). 

Meanwhile, MTN Rwanda’s voice revenue recorded a 5.1% YoY decline to Rwf 31.8 billion from Rwf 33.5 billion. This is a reflection of customers’ continual shift towards data and digital services. 

With the Rwanda central bank’s forecasts of inflation to remain within the target range of 2% to 8% in 2025, MTN Rwanda is looking to sustain the H1’25 turnaround by accelerating the rollout of its 5G service. It will also look to work along a local currency that averaged 10.7% weaker against the US dollar in H1.

“Through a continued focus on expense discipline, operational efficiencies, and prudent capital allocation, we are well-positioned to drive further improvements in earnings, cash flow, and shareholder value,” the company said about its H2 2025.