Airtel Africa has reported record financial results for the financial year 2026, driven by strong growth in data consumption, mobile money services, and smartphone adoption across its African markets.
The telecommunications giant posted constant-currency revenue growth of 24.0%, the highest in its history, while reported revenue rose by 29.5% to $6.415 billion from $4.955 billion in the previous financial year.
Underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 37.2% in reported currency to $3.162 billion. EBITDA margins also improved to 49.3%, briefly surpassing the 50% mark in the final quarter of the year.
Profit after tax more than doubled to $813 million, up from $328 million in FY2025.
East Africa, including Uganda, remained one of Airtel Africa’s strongest growth markets. The region generated revenues of $2.192 billion, representing an 18.9% increase in reported currency and 13.8% growth in constant currency.
The regional customer base grew by 8.7% to 84.3 million subscribers.
The appreciation of the Ugandan shilling against the US dollar during the year contributed to stronger reported currency growth compared to constant currency performance.
Data customers in East Africa increased by 15.7% to 36.5 million, while data traffic surged by 50.3%, reflecting rising demand for internet connectivity across the region.
Smartphone penetration reached 46.6%, with average data usage per customer rising by 28% year-on-year to 8.0GB per month.
The company also expanded its 5G rollout in East Africa, with more than 2,200 sites now enabled for 5G services across five key markets.
Airtel Money, the group’s mobile financial services arm, emerged as one of the strongest-performing business segments during the year. Subscriber numbers grew by 21.3% to 54.1 million customers across Airtel Africa’s operations.
In December 2025, Airtel Africa announced a partnership with SpaceX to roll out Starlink Direct-to-Cell satellite connectivity across its 14 African markets. The partnership aims to improve connectivity in remote and underserved communities.
In March 2025, Airtel Africa and MTN Group also announced network infrastructure sharing agreements in Uganda and Nigeria, a move the company says will expand network coverage and reduce the cost of delivering connectivity.
With a customer base of 183.5 million across 14 African markets, Airtel Africa said it is entering FY2027 with strong momentum as data services continue to drive revenues and Airtel Money strengthens its position as a trusted financial services platform.
Sunil Taldar, chief executive officer of Airtel Africa, attributed the company’s strong performance to its focused growth strategy and increased adoption of digital technologies, including artificial intelligence.
“This year delivered a very strong performance across both operating and financial metrics, reflecting the attractive industry fundamentals and structural growth drivers across our footprint,” Taldar said.
“Adoption of new digital technologies and AI has been pivotal in unlocking growth opportunities and driving efficiencies, with wide-ranging rollouts enhancing customer experience through site-level network optimisation, streamlined onboarding, and more intuitive digital journeys enabling greater personalisation.”
He added that the strategy contributed to a 22% increase in smartphone customers to 91 million, driving an almost 50% rise in data traffic alongside continued strong growth in Airtel Money services.
