MTN Group recorded strong operational and financial performance in the 2025 financial year, with service revenue jumping by nearly 25 per cent to R218 billion.
  
The telecom giant said the results marked the final year of its Ambition 2025 strategy, with strong commercial outcomes driven largely by its operations in MTN Nigeria and MTN Ghana.
   
The group also recorded strong free cash flow, improved returns, and announced a 45 per cent increase in dividend payments to shareholders.
   
MTN disclosed that its total customer base rose to more than 307 million across 16 markets as of December 31.
   
This includes 172 million data users and 70 million Mobile Money customers.
  
Sustained investments of about R38 billion supported the growth to expand the capacity, coverage, and quality of its network infrastructure and digital platforms.
  
Data traffic across the network surged by 27 per cent during the year, while the average monthly data consumption per user increased to 12.5GB, up from 10.8GB previously.
   
MTN also expanded its fintech ecosystem, with total transaction volumes rising by 15 per cent to more than 23 billion transactions. The value of these transactions exceeded $500 billion during the year.
   
In terms of unit performance, MTN Nigeria recorded a 54.9 per cent increase in service revenue, while MTN Ghana posted a 35.9 per cent rise.
  
MTN South Africa grew service revenue by two per cent, reflecting operational resilience in a mature market environment.
   
Basic earnings per share returned to profit in 2025 after a loss in 2024, while adjusted headline earnings per share increased by 67 per cent.
  
MTN’s board declared a dividend of 500 cents per share for the year, up from 345 cents in 2024 and well above the minimum dividend guidance of 370 cents previously communicated to investors.
   
The company also unveiled an enhanced shareholder remuneration framework, including a R6 billion share buyback programme aimed at improving shareholder value.
   
Recall that MTN Nigeria earlier reported a swing into profit after tax of N1.1 trillion in 2025, compared to a N400.4 billion loss recorded in 2024, reflecting a recovery in operating conditions and improved cost management.