Nigeria and Ghana have emerged as the financial backbone of MTN Group, collectively accounting for about 90 per cent of its total profit after tax in 2025.
This is because the telecom giant posted a revenue of $12.7 billion, its highest since 2022. The performance underscores a growing concentration of earnings in West Africa, where strong data growth, tariff adjustments, and currency dynamics amplified profitability across the group’s most strategic markets.
In 2025, the MTN Group recorded its best showing in three years, posting $12.7 billion in revenue, a 23 per cent growth from the $10.3 billion posted in 2024. In constant currency terms (South African rands), revenue growth came in at 21 per cent. The stronger showing in dollar terms was largely driven by the appreciation of the South African rand between 2024 and 2025, which magnified reported earnings.
Away from the topline, the rebound in profitability was even more striking. The group reported a profit after tax of $1.53 billion in 2025, a sharp turnaround from the $595 million net loss recorded in 2024. This dramatic swing highlights both operational recovery and improved macroeconomic conditions across key markets.
A closer look at the group’s results reveals a detailed country-by-country breakdown of revenue, but it notably lacks similar transparency on profitability. Bottom-line figures are only available through disclosures by listed subsidiaries such as MTN Nigeria, MTN Ghana, MTN Uganda, and MTN Rwanda.
Beyond Nigeria and Ghana, MTN Uganda delivered a solid $188 million profit after tax, while MTN Rwandacell reported a more modest $6.8 million.
However, the absence of profit disclosure for its core South African business is striking. As the group’s home market, the lack of clarity raises a critical question for investors: is MTN Group facing earnings pressure in South Africa, or simply withholding details?
Here is a closer look at the factors underpinning MTN Group’s $12.7 billion performance.
Biggest market: Nigeria
By every major metric, Nigeria remains MTN’s largest and most important market. MTN Nigeria closed 2025 with a subscriber base of 87.26 million, accounting for about 28 per cent of the group’s total 307 million subscribers. It is followed by Iran, where MTN-Irancell serves 57.57 million users, while South Africa ranks third with 40.57 million subscribers.
Beyond subscriber scale, Nigeria is also MTN’s single largest revenue contributor. In 2025, MTN Nigeria generated $3.45 billion in revenue, representing 27 per cent of the group’s total topline. By comparison, MTN South Africa recorded $2.86 billion in revenue, a 0.5 per cent decline from the $2.87 billion recorded in 2024. In constant currency terms, South Africa’s revenue declined by 2.9 per cent, underscoring underlying pressure in the home market.
Nigeria’s contribution becomes even more pronounced at the bottom line. MTN Nigeria posted a net income of $736.6 million in 2025, accounting for 48 per cent of the group’s total profit of $1.53 billion.
Data services remained the primary growth engine. In 2025, data revenue rose to $1.84 billion, accounting for 53.4 per cent of total revenue. This marks a 63 per cent increase from $1.13 billion recorded in 2024. The surge reflects both rising data consumption and the impact of tariff adjustments approved by the Nigerian government in February 2025, which lifted pricing power across the sector.
While Nigeria anchors the group’s performance, another West African market is rapidly gaining strategic weight.
Largest revenue per user and highest margins: Ghana
On a per-user basis, MTN’s most lucrative market is Ghana. Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) in Ghana rose to $6.76 in the fourth quarter of 2025, while the full-year average stood at $5.46. This compares closely with eSwatini’s Swazi MTN Limited, which recorded an average ARPU of $5.85. However, the distinction is important: Swazi MTN is a joint venture in which MTN holds a 30 per cent stake, while MTN Ghana is majority-owned, with a 72.9 per cent stake.
Similar to Nigeria, Ghana also benefited from tariff adjustments, with the National Communications Authority approving price increases from July 2025. In addition, a strong appreciation of the Ghanaian cedi during the year significantly boosted reported ARPU, driving a sharp increase from $3.91 in Q1 to $6.76 in Q4 2025.
Profitability metrics further reinforce Ghana’s importance. While the group recorded an overall profit margin of 12.1 per cent in 2025, MTN Ghana posted a standout margin of 32.1 per cent, well above the group average and higher than Nigeria’s 21.6 per cent margin.
At the EBITDA level, Ghana also leads. The market delivered an EBITDA margin of 60.1 per cent, ahead of Uganda at 53.8 per cent and Nigeria at 52.7 per cent, highlighting its efficiency and strong operating leverage.
In absolute terms, Ghana is MTN’s third-largest market by both revenue and subscribers (excluding the joint venture in Iran). The operation generated $2 billion in revenue in 2025, representing a 60.5 per cent increase from $1.24 billion in 2024. Subscriber numbers reached 31.1 million, placing it behind South Africa but firmly ahead of most other African operations, excluding the Irancell joint venture.
Mobile money remains another critical pillar of Ghana’s performance. Momo by MTN has its largest footprint in Ghana, with 19.27 million subscribers, followed by Uganda with 14.68 million. This contrasts sharply with Nigeria and South Africa, where mobile money adoption remains relatively limited at 3.72 million and 1.45 million subscribers, respectively.
In profit terms, Ghana stands as MTN’s second-largest contributor. The market delivered a net income of $644 million in 2025, accounting for 42 per cent of the group’s total earnings. Combined with Nigeria’s 48 per cent contribution, the two markets together generated roughly 90 per cent of MTN Group’s total profit for the year.
The concentration of earnings underscores the strategic importance of the West African corridor, where favourable regulatory shifts, strong demand for data, and improving macroeconomic conditions are reshaping the group’s profit profile.
MTN invested $2.85 billion in Africa in 2025
Despite strong earnings growth, MTN slightly moderated its capital expenditure. In 2025, total CAPEX across Africa stood at $2.85 billion, down marginally from $2.94 billion in 2024.
Nigeria remained the largest destination for investment. The group deployed $1.06 billion in the country, representing 37 per cent of total CAPEX and a 7 per cent increase from the $986 million invested in 2024. Over a two-year period, MTN has committed $2.05 billion to Nigeria, reinforcing its long-term bet on the market.
Elsewhere, MTN invested $468 million in South Africa and $448 million in Ghana, while Uganda accounted for $229 million in capital expenditure during the year.
Conclusion
MTN’s 2025 performance reveals a group increasingly anchored by a narrow set of high-yield markets. While its geographic footprint spans multiple regions, earnings power is consolidating around Nigeria and Ghana, where pricing reforms, data monetisation, and mobile money scale are driving outsized returns.
Looking ahead, this concentration presents a dual narrative. On one hand, it reinforces MTN’s ability to extract value from its strongest markets. On the other hand, it raises questions about earnings diversification and exposure to regulatory and currency risks within the West African corridor. How the group balances expansion with resilience will likely define the next phase of its growth story.
