Airtel Money Revenue Jumps 25% as Customer Base Reaches 56.7 MillionAirtel Money Revenue Jumps25% as Customer BaseReaches 56.7 Million

The results give investors a first detailed look at the standalone mobile money business behind one of Africa’s major telecom-linked payment networks. They also show a tension at the heart of its growth: more customers and transactions are lifting income, but changes to agreements with its former parent group and levies in some markets have weighed on margins.

The figures were released by Airtel Money in its half-year results announcement. Reuters also reported the revenue growth and customer figures in its coverage of the results.

Revenue and profit both increased

Airtel Money’s reported revenue rose 34% to KSh107.8 billion ($830 million), compared with KSh80.5 billion ($620 million) a year earlier. On a constant-currency basis, which strips out the effect of exchange-rate movements, growth was 25.1%. The difference matters because currency appreciation, particularly in the Zambian kwacha, made the reported increase look stronger than the underlying growth rate.

Profit after tax increased 21.6% to KSh29.6 billion ($228 million), from KSh24.4 billion ($188 million) in the same period last year. Gross profit rose 22% in constant currency to KSh64.8 billion ($499 million).

However, the underlying earnings margin narrowed. Underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, a measure of operating performance, rose 16.1% in constant currency to KSh51.7 billion ($398 million). Its margin fell to 48%, from 50.8% a year earlier.

The company said the main pressure came from changes to intra-group agreements that took effect in July 2025, alongside an additional levy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Airtel Money said the first-half impact was more concentrated in the period and that it expects margins to strengthen in the second half, while maintaining its financial-year guidance. That is management’s outlook, not a guaranteed outcome.

Payments and financial services are growing

The company’s revenue came from several services, rather than wallet transactions alone. Wallet services generated KSh52.9 billion ($408 million), up 27.6% in constant currency. Payments and transfers generated KSh46.7 billion ($360 million), up 29.4%, while financial services revenue grew 44.8%.

That mix is important because Airtel Money is trying to become more than a way to send cash between phones. Merchant payments and other financial services can deepen customer use and create new sources of income, although the results do not mean every market has the same product mix or growth rate.

The customer base reached 56.7 million, and the number of app customers rose 64.3% to 4.1 million. The group also reported 2.4 million active agents, up 26.3%, and more than 587,000 active merchants, an increase of 85.5%.

Airtel Money said the annualised total value processed reached KSh35.1 trillion ($270 billion) in the second quarter of its financial year. This is a measure of the value moving through the platform, not revenue earned by the company.

East Africa remains a major contributor

East Africa generated KSh79.8 billion ($615 million) in revenue, up 20.5% in constant currency. The company reported 13.5% customer-base growth in the region and said total processed value increased 34.7% in constant currency to KSh12.7 trillion ($98 billion).

Those figures matter in a region where mobile money is used for everyday transfers, business payments and access to some financial services. But regional growth should not be mistaken for Kenya-only performance: the reported East Africa figure covers multiple markets, and the company’s release does not provide a separate Kenyan revenue figure in the headline results.

For Kenyan consumers and businesses, the results are best read as a signal of intensifying competition in digital payments, rather than evidence of an immediate change in local fees or services. The company’s performance will depend on whether it can convert more telecom subscribers into active mobile-money users while expanding services without allowing costs and levies to erode its margins.

What happens next for investors

Airtel Money’s board declared an interim dividend of 6.4 US cents per share, payable on 4 December 2026 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 20 November. The company said it remains on track to deliver its financial-year guidance, including revenue growth in the mid-20s percentage range in constant currency.

Investors will be watching whether the company sustains customer growth, improves its operating margin and turns more transaction activity into profitable services. Its results arrive soon after its London listing, giving shareholders a fresh basis for assessing both the growth opportunity and the costs of running a fast-expanding financial platform.

Mwenendo previously examined the company’s market debut in Airtel Money’s shares slipping below their London offer price. The new results shift the focus from the listing price to the operating business: customer growth is strong, but maintaining profit margins remains a test.