Airtel Africa posted an 18.9 percent revenue growth in its East African business in the year ended March 2026, as demand for data and mobile money services increased.

 

The company said revenues from its East Africa operations – Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia and Malawi – rose to $2.2 billion from $1.8 billion a year earlier.

Operating profit for the region climbed to $576 million, from $472 million, while underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation increased to $1.06 billion from $877 million.

East Africa is the telecoms group’s largest revenue contributor, and the performance comes against the backdrop of the region’s expanding digital economy, where rising smartphone adoption and financial inclusion are driving telecoms growth beyond traditional voice services.

Mobile money emerged as one of the strongest growth drivers, with revenues rising sharply to $1 billion from $747 million, reflecting increasing uptake of digital financial services across the region.

Airtel Africa said its East African customer base expanded by 8.7 percent to 84.3 million subscribers, from 77.6 million a year earlier, boosting voice revenue growth.

It attributes the customer base growth largely to expansion of both network coverage and distribution network.

Growth in internet usage continued to underpin its data business. Data customer numbers grew 15.7 percent, while data traffic surged 50.3 percent during the year as customers consumed more online videos, social media and digital services.

Average monthly data consumption per customer rose 28 percent to eight gigabytes, while smartphone penetration increased to 46.6 percent from 42.3 percent.

Airtel has been investing heavily in network infrastructure across the region, including 4G and 5G rollout, as it seeks to keep up with rivals Safaricom, MTN Group and Vodacom.

Group-wide, Airtel Africa, which is the continent’s third-largest wireless carrier, reported a 29.5 percent increase in revenues to $6.4 billion.

Mobile services revenues rose 27.6 percent to $5.35 billion, while mobile money revenues grew 36.3 percent, driven mainly by East and Francophone Africa markets.

Despite strong financial performance, the telco delayed plans for an initial public offering of its mobile money business to the second half of 2026 due to higher costs stemming from the ongoing US-Israeli war against Iran.“Market conditions following recent geopolitical developments have affected the anticipated timing of the Airtel Money IPO,” CEO Sunil Taldar said.

At the same time, the company is also pushing into satellite-based connectivity as African telecoms operators seek to expand internet coverage into remote areas where terrestrial infrastructure is limited and expensive to set up.

In December 2025, Airtel Africa announced a partnership with the American satellite firm SpaceX to introduce Starlink direct-to-cell (D2C) satellite connectivity across its 14 African markets.

D2C is a solution in areas without reliable internet connectivity, such as remote locations, flights, and the sea, where other connectivity technologies like fibre optic and cellular fail to reach.

Satellites equipped with cell tower technology act as space-based cell towers, connecting directly to standard phones using existing 4G or 3G protocols. Phones recognise the satellite as another mobile network, similar to roaming.

Airtel has already begun piloting the service in Kenya.“Reaching underserved communities is a key priority, and we continue to expand rural coverage through new site rollouts and investing in spectrum and technologies to support increased capacity,” the company said.

Rival Vodacom also signed an Africa-wide deal with SpaceX last November to integrate Starlink's satellite technology for data relay into its mobile network, while MTN is also exploring partnerships with satellite providers.

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