Nigerian telecommunications giant, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc (MTNN) posted revenue in excess of N1.2 trillion for the period from January to September on the back of Nigerians’ fast-increasing demand for data, according to the unaudited financial statement issued by the company.
The result makes MTNN the first ever public company in Nigeria to record a revenue that high for a nine-month period putting it on track to surpass this year its full-year sales figure for 2020 when it reported N1.3 trillion.
Data is having its moment in Nigeria on account of the country’s large, vibrant and digital-savvy youthful population and an explosion of fintech services targeting that social category.
The Nigerian unit of Africa’s biggest telecommunications firm, Johannesburg-based MTN Group, noted that active data users expanded by 2.5 million to 33.2 million within the period.
But a major downside of its performance was a slump in its mobile subscriber’s figure, which fell by 7.5 million to 67.5 million. The telco cited regulatory bottlenecks on new SIM activations and sales as the trigger.
Pre-tax profit jumped more than half to N321.4 billion, profit for the period stood at N220.312 billion, 52.7 per cent stronger than what was reported for the same period of last year.
The stock gained 0.92 per cent in Lagos on Thursday, rising to N175.60 per share following the news.
“Our focus on deepening our partnerships has resulted in signing a five-year strategic partnership with the Nigerian Football Federation to become the official communications partner,” said Karl Toriola, CEO.
“We are excited about the potential to combine the power of our network and technology solutions with the passion that Nigerians have for football.”
The wireless operator upped its capital expenditure spending by more than a third to N261.1 billion, saying in August it planned to commit as much as $1.5 billion to broadband expansion in the next three years.
MTN Group hopes to sell a portion of its 79 per cent stake in its Nigerian operation to local investors in the country, which contributes about one-third of its revenue.
