Airtel Money Reports 25% Revenue Growth in First-Half Results Following London Listing

LONDON: Airtel Money, the African mobile money service that listed in London earlier this month, has reported its maiden financial results for the six months leading up to September. The company posted revenue of $830 million, marking a 25.1% increase from the previous year in constant currency.

Alongside the revenue growth, the company reported a profit after tax of $228 million, up from $188 million in the corresponding period. According to the company, this increase primarily reflects strong revenue growth over the first-half period.

Customer adoption also saw significant growth. Airtel Money reported an 18.7% increase in customers, bringing its total to 56.7 million. This growth drove the mobile money penetration of Airtel Africa's telco customer base to 42.9%, representing an increase of 3.2 percentage points.

Operational metrics further indicated higher user activity. Average revenue per user grew by 5.1% in constant currency. This was supported by an increase in transaction value per customer, which rose by 14.9% to $397 per month.

Following these financial results, Airtel Money announced it will pay an interim dividend of 6.4 cents per share and reiterated its full-year guidance. In market activity, shares in Airtel Money closed at 179 pence on Friday, trading below their offer price of 196 pence following the market debut on October 9.

"Airtel Money's maiden financial results demonstrate healthy top-line growth and increased customer transaction values following its public listing in London. The 25% growth in revenue, backed by a rise in profit after tax and higher user engagement, indicates solid operational performance in the African mobile money market. While the stock has traded below its initial offer price since its October debut, maintaining full-year guidance and issuing an interim dividend reflect management's confidence in sustained cash flows and continued market penetration." — Dr. Shishir Gupta, Founder & CEO, StartupLanes