MTN Group H1 Adjusted Profit Jumps 21.3% on Robust Subscriber Growth and Strong West African Revenues
South Africa-based telecommunications giant MTN Group, Africa’s largest mobile network operator with over 317 million subscribers across 19 markets, reported a 21.3% increase in adjusted earnings for the first half of the year. The strong performance was anchored by accelerating subscriber additions in the second quarter and broad-based double-digit expansion in service revenue.
The group announced that its headline earnings per share (HEPS)—the primary profit metric in South Africa—rose to 793 cents for the six-month period ended June 30, up from 654 cents in the corresponding period last year. Core EBITDA increased 24.4% to 56 billion rand, driving an EBITDA margin expansion of 3.1 percentage points to 47.1%.
Conversely, basic reported earnings per share contracted by 5.8%, weighed down by non-cash impairments related to MTN’s 49% equity stake in Irancell amid regional geopolitical conflicts involving Iran, alongside foreign exchange translation losses in South Sudan.
MTN Group H1 Financial & Operational Snapshot
The table below summarizes MTN Group’s core performance indicators and regional revenue drivers:
Metric / Regional MarketPerformance / Growth (H1)Operational Drivers & Context
Headline Earnings Per Share (HEPS)793 cents (+21.3% YoY)Jumped from 654 cents in H1 previous year.
Group Service Revenue (Constant FX)115.3B Rand (~$7.21B) (+17.5%)Double-digit expansion across core African markets.
Core EBITDA56B Rand (+24.4% YoY)Margin expanded by 310 bps to 47.1%.
MTN Nigeria+25.7% Service RevenueStrong demand for data and fintech services.
MTN Ghana+32.3% Service RevenueLeading growth across the West and Central Africa region.
MTN South Africa+1.5% Service RevenueSteady growth despite competitive prepaid market pressure.
Other Growth MarketsPositive growth recordedCameroon, Uganda, and Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire).
Key Performance Highlights & Challenges
Subscriber Momentum: Sustained commercial momentum accelerated customer net additions during Q2, pushing the group's total active subscriber footprint past 317 million across the continent.
West African Outperformance: Top-line growth was heavily underpinned by Nigeria (+25.7%) and Ghana (+32.3%), reinforcing West Africa's role as the group’s primary revenue engine.
Geopolitical and FX Headwinds: Profit headwinds were concentrated in non-core regional exposure, specifically the non-cash markdown of Irancell assets and localized currency devaluations in South Sudan.