Airtel Kenya Pays KSh 8.45B ($65M) for 100 MHz of 5G Spectrum on 25-Year LicenceAirtel Kenya Pays KSh 8.45B ($65M) for 100 MHz of 5G Spectrum on 25-Year Licence
Key Highlights
- Airtel Kenya has paid KSh 8.45B ($65M) for 100 MHz of 3500 MHz spectrum on a licence lasting 25 years.
- The Communications Authority of Kenya approved the purchase subject to standard conditions, according to Airtel Africa's half-year report published on 30 October 2026.
- Airtel Africa's report does not give Kenya-only revenue, so the spectrum's payoff for Kenyan customers will have to be judged from later filings.
Airtel Kenya has bought 100 MHz of spectrum in the 3500 MHz band for KSh 8.45B ($65M) on a licence that runs for 25 years, adding a large block of mid-band airwaves to the operator's Kenyan network.
The purchase matters because the 3500 MHz band is a core band for fast mobile data and fifth-generation services, and a 25-year term lets Airtel Kenya plan network spending over a long horizon. It also sharpens competition in a market where mobile operators fight for data customers.
What Airtel disclosed
Airtel Africa disclosed the deal in its results for the half year ended 30 September 2026, published on 30 October 2026. The report says Airtel Kenya acquired the 100 MHz block for KSh 8.45B ($65M) for a 25-year term, following approval from the Communications Authority of Kenya, subject to standard conditions.
The shilling figure is Mwenendo's conversion at KSh 129.94 to the dollar. The filing quotes the price in US dollars.
What the report does not say
Airtel Africa reports Kenya inside its East Africa segment, which also covers Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. For the half year, that segment recorded mobile services revenue of KSh 163.47B ($1,258M), up 15.4% in constant currency, and a customer base of 88.8 million, up 8.0%.
Those numbers cover six countries, not Kenya alone, so they cannot be used to measure what the spectrum will add in Kenya. The filing, as read by Mwenendo, gives no network rollout timetable or price plans tied to the new airwaves.
Part of a busy week for Airtel
As Mwenendo earlier reported, Airtel Money's revenue grew 25% in the same six-month period as the mobile money arm posted its first results since listing. Mwenendo also covered how Airtel Money slipped below its offer price when trading opened in London.
For Kenyan subscribers, the practical test will be whether the extra spectrum shows up as faster, more reliable data in towns and cities. Airtel has not yet said where it will switch the new band on.
In Summary
- Who bought the spectrum?
- Airtel Kenya, part of Airtel Africa.
- What was bought?
- 100 MHz of spectrum in the 3500 MHz band for KSh 8.45B ($65M).
- When was it disclosed?
- In Airtel Africa's half-year results published on 30 October 2026, covering the six months to 30 September 2026.
- Where does it apply?
- Kenya.
- Why does it matter?
- The 3500 MHz band supports fast mobile data, and the 25-year licence gives long-term planning certainty.
- How was it approved?
- Following approval from the Communications Authority of Kenya, subject to standard conditions.