MTN Nigeria data revenues surged by 57 percent in the nine months’ period that ended in September 2020, as Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) rose 9.1 percent to N497 billion.
Active data users for the largest Telco in the country increased by 1.7 million to 30.7 million people for the period as total revenues surged by 13.9 percent to N975.7 billion.
Total mobile subscribers increased to 75 million.
Profit before tax (PBT) declined by 0.6 percent to N211.6 billion while Earnings per share fell by 3.3 percent to N7.1 per share.
“Following a decline in voice traffic and acceleration in data during lockdowns in Q2, we have seen a normalization of traffic as restrictions have been removed, with a recovery of voice traffic and continued growth in data,” the firm said.
MTN Nigeria added 2.9 million new smartphones to its network in the quarter, bringing smartphone penetration to 45.2 percent up from 43.5 percent in Q2 and 41.7 percent in Q3, 2019.
Revenue from digital and fintech services rose by 114.3 percent and 28.3 percent respectively for the period as fintech subscribers increased by 1.2 million in the quarter to 3.4 million, driving higher transaction volumes and fintech revenue growth.
MTN Nigeria’s 4G network now covers 52.9 percent of the population, up from 48.6 percent in Q2 and 35.4 percent in Q3 2019.
The firm recorded free cash flow of N303.6 billion for the period, as capital expenditure hit N194.2 billion, up 26.1 percent.