Airtel Africa has said mobile money revenue in constant currency pushed by East Africa’s strong performance tops its revenue for the year ending March.
The group mobile money revenue grew by 32.8 percent in constant currency compared to mobile services grew by 19.4 percent driven by voice revenue growth of 11.9 percent and data revenue growth of 29.2 percent.
Airtel Africa Chief Executive Officer Olusegun Ogunsanya said in a statement over the weekend that the strong revenue performance was a reflection not only of the opportunity but also the resilience of affordable offerings despite the inflationary pressure across the continent.
“The consistent deployment of our ‘win with’ strategy supported the acceleration in constant currency revenue growth over the recent quarters which has reduced the impact of currency headwinds faced across most of our markets,” Mr Ogunsanya said.
Loss after tax was 89 million US dollars, primarily impacted by significant foreign exchange headwinds, resulting in a 549 million US dollars exceptional loss net of tax following the Nigerian naira devaluation last June 2023 and the Malawian kwacha devaluation last November.
“The growth opportunity that exists across our markets remains compelling, and we are well positioned to deliver against this opportunity.
“We will continue to focus on margin improvement from the recent level as we progress through the year,” the CEO said.
The group’s total customer base grew by 9.0 percent to 152.7 million and also, they continue to bridge the digital divide with a 17.8 percent increase in data customers to 64.4 million and a 20.8 percent increase in data usage per customer.
Mobile money subscriber growth of 20.7 percent reflects their continued investment into distribution to drive increased financial inclusion across our markets.
Transaction value increase of 38.2 percent in constant currency with an annual transaction value of over 112 billion US dollars in reported currency.
Increased transactions across the ecosystem reflect the enhanced range of offerings and increased customer adoption, supporting constant currency ARPU growth of 8.6 percent.
The group said will continue network investment to support an enhanced customer experience and drive increased 4G coverage.
Airtel Africa said 95 percent of sites are now 4G operational, facilitating a 42.3 percent increase in 4G customers over the year.
Source: allafrica.com
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Britam half-year net profit hits Sh2bn on higher investment income
Insurer and financial services provider Britam posted a 22.5 percent jump in net earnings for the half-year ended June 2024, to Sh2 billion, buoyed by increased investment income.
The rise in half-year net profit from Sh1.64 billion posted in a similar period last year came on the back of net investment income rising 2.5 times to Sh13.27 billion from Sh5.3 billion.
“We are confident in the growth and performance trend that Britam has achieved, supported by its subsidiaries in Kenya and the region. Our business is expanding its revenue base while effectively managing costs,” Britam Chief Executive Officer Tom Gitogo said.
“Our customer-centric approach is fueling growth in our customer base and product uptake, particularly through micro-insurance, partnerships, and digital channels.”
The investment income growth was fueled by interest and dividend income rising 34 percent to Sh9.1 billion, which the insurer attributed to growth in revenue and the gains from the realignment of the group’s investment portfolio.
Britam also booked a Sh3.79 billion gain on financial assets at a fair value, compared with a Sh1.8 billion loss posted in a similar period last year.
The increased investment income helped offset the 12.7 percent decline in net insurance service result to Sh2.13 billion in the wake of claims paid out rising at a faster pace than that of premiums received.
Britam said insurance revenue, which is money from written premiums, increased to Sh17.8 billion from Sh16.6 billion, primarily driven by growth in the Kenya insurance business and regional general insurance businesses, which contributed 30 percent of the revenue.
The group has a presence in seven countries in Africa namely Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan, Mozambique, and Malawi.
Britam’s insurance service expense hit Sh13.6 billion from Sh11.3 billion, while net insurance finance expenses rose 2.6 times to Sh12.3 billion during the same period.
“Net insurance finance expenses increased mainly due to growth in interest cost for the deposit administration business driven by better investment performance. This has also been impacted by a decline in the yield curve, which has led to an increase in the insurance contract liabilities. The increase has been offset by a matching increase in fair value gain on assets,” said Britam.
Britam’s growth in profit is in line with that of other Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed insurers, which have seen a rise in profits.
Jubilee Holdings net profit in the six months increased by 22.7 percent to Sh2.5 billion on increased income from insurance, helping the insurer maintain Sh2 per share interim dividend.
CIC Insurance Group posted a 0.64 percent rise in net profit to Sh709.99 million in the same period as net earnings of Liberty Kenya nearly tripled to Sh632 million from Sh213 million, while Sanlam Kenya emerged from a loss to post a Sh282.2 million net profit.
