Airtel Africa reported its strongest financial results on record recently, posting a profit after tax of $813 million for the year ended March 31 which is a 147% increase from $328 million the previous year, while confirming that the planned IPO of its mobile money unit will not proceed in the first half of 2026 as originally scheduled.
According to Airtel Africa, the revenue rose from 29.5% to $6.41 billion, powered by growing demand for data and mobile money services across the company’s 14 African markets.
Airtel Money was a key driver of the group’s performance. The mobile money business grew its user base by 21.3% to 54.1 million customers over the year, while active transacting customers jumped 74%. Annualised transaction value reached $215 billion by the final quarter of the financial year.
Despite those figures, the company said the listing would be delayed due to difficult market conditions. Chief Executive Sunil Taldar said the company remains fully committed to listing Airtel Money but is waiting for greater market stability. Taldar cited global geopolitical tensions, including the Iran conflict, as factors that have unsettled financial markets, pushed up oil prices, and made institutional investors more cautious about large emerging-market listings.
The IPO had been expected to raise between $1.5 billion and $2 billion, with analyst estimates placing the unit’s valuation at around $10 billion. Existing investors in Airtel Money include Mastercard, TPG, and a fund linked to Qatar’s sovereign wealth system.
Airtel Africa also reported record EBITDA margins of 50.3% in its final quarter, the highest in the company’s history, but warned that rising energy costs posed a risk to margins going forward. Telecom networks across Africa rely significantly on diesel-powered infrastructure, leaving operational costs exposed to movements in global oil prices.
The same geopolitical pressures cited as a reason for the IPO delay are therefore already affecting the company’s cost base. Airtel said it expects to revisit the listing timeline later in the year once market conditions improve.
