Airtel Africa - Afrikan Heroes

Airtel Africa Launches Africa-wide Money Transfer Service Through Mukuru

July 25, 2020

Airtel Africa plc, a provider of telecommunications and mobile money services in 14 countries across sub-Saharan Africa and Mukuru, one of Africa’s largest remittance organisations, have announced a partnership which will enable Mukuru customers to instantly send cross-border transfers directly to Airtel Money customer wallets in 12 African countries.

This partnership will be particularly beneficial for customers making intra-Africa payments from Southern Africa where Mukuru has a leading presence. Customers also benefit from no longer having to physically go to an Agent to receive cross-border payments.

Once Airtel Money customers receive the funds, they can be used to pay utility bills, goods and services, transferred to family or can be cashed out at any of Airtel Africa’s exclusive branches, kiosks and agents.

Raghunath Mandava, CEO, Airtel Africa, commented “This partnership empowers those without a bank account to be included in the formal financial ecosystem and to move money conveniently, seamlessly and securely. At a time when intra-Africa cross-border payments are of strategic importance, we are pleased to be working together on cross-country mobile money transfers, while also supporting local economies.”

Andy Jury, CEO, Mukuru, confirms: “This partnership exemplifies the collaborative spirit in which Mukuru is engaging with other industry leaders to provide universal access to cash and digital financial services across the continent. The enablement of digital money transfers between Mukuru and Airtel Africa customers means we can offer greater choice to the hardworking diaspora when providing for their families back home. The freedom to choose the solution best befitting your personal circumstances is pivotal to true economic empowerment.”

The partnership, subject to local regulatory approvals, will initially launch in Malawi, Zambia, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It will then roll out to subsequent Airtel Money markets.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer.

Airtel Africa Partners WorldRemit to Expand Network

July 23, 2020

Diasporan remittances and local money transfers have received a boost with the new partnership between Airtel Africa and WorldRemit aimed at expanding operations of Airtel Money to Rwanda in a bid to ensure availability of the products across countries such as DRC, Uganda, Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi and Niger. Airtel Money enables mobile money users to send local and international money transfers, make utility payments, pay merchants, save money in their mobile wallets, purchase airtime and access a range of mobile financial products.

WorldRemit will enable customers from across the globe to receive money into Airtel Money wallets. Users can use the free mobile app; choose Mobile Money and Airtel as the operator, then follow the prompts. Andrew Stewart, Managing Director for Middle East and Africa at WorldRemit said that “the connection to more Mobile Money accounts through Airtel Africa allows us to expand our payout network and options available to customers across the continent. It is really exciting and important to us that we continue to increase financial inclusion for our customers in Africa whilst delivering a fast, affordable and secure service.”

Reacting to the partnership and the huge opportunities it offers, Raghunath Mandava, CEO of Airtel Africa, says, “we are committed to enhancing financial inclusion in the countries we operate through building a huge infrastructure of cashing in and cashing out locations in the markets and increasing our distribution. This means that our customers can now receive fast digital payments via WorldRemit from around the world directly to their mobile phones, as well as access their funds at our exclusive kiosks and branches at their convenience.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Airtel Africa Reaps From Lockdown Induced High Tele-Traffic

May 19, 2020

One of Africa’s largest telecommunications company, Airtel Africa has recorded a whooping profit in first quarter of 2020 driven mainly by high growth in data traffic. The company posted revenue of $899 million for the first quarter of 2020, while announcing its Q1 2020 earnings showing its revenue is up 15% from the $781 million it posted in March 2019. Owned by India’s conglomerate Bharti Group, Airtel operates in 14 African countries, providing voice, data, tower and mobile money services to a customer base of over 110 million people.

In its latest quarterly report, Airtel disclosed that voice services account for the largest share of its revenue. Voice revenue stood at $510 million for the first quarter of 2020; that’s a 5.9% growth over the previous year. Much of that revenue comes from its Nigerian market where Airtel has 41.8 million mobile subscribers. In the West African country, voice revenue grew 16% and accounted for $234 million in the company’s voice revenue during the period. Airtel’s voice revenue from its francophone and East African markets grew slowly at 10.3% and 6.7% respectively.

While the overall importance of voice remains clear, the pandemic is having an immediate impact, Airtel wrote. It told investors the economic effects of the pandemic and government lockdowns have impacted “customer behaviour” and lowered disposable income. The company did not explain further on this, saying “it is difficult to precisely forecast what the impact of this will be on customers and business. However, our performance during the month of April has been resilient as the business continued to deliver constant currency revenue growth, although at a lower rate.”

Since the start of the year, Airtel’s data revenue is in growth territory. The company’s data revenue jumped 35.6% in Q1 2020 as it pulled in $253 million. With millions of people working from home and using data services, voice calls and revenue are dropping for many telcos. A few telcos have made early predictions that the recent growth in data services will not immediately offset declines in voice revenue. Airtel believes the reverse will happen. It has “already seen an increase in data traffic” since the outbreak of the pandemic, and believes “increase in data and mobile money revenue growth [will] more than offset revenue decline in voice.”

Across its 14 markets, it has added 2.6 million new data subscribers since December 2019, bringing its total active subscriber base to 35.4 million. While this figure looks small, it doesn’t tell the full story. In important markets, Airtel’s pivot to data came late. In Nigeria, the company launched its 4G solution in 2018, two years later than rival telcos. MTN Nigeria, Glo, 9Mobile and even Smile, all had 4G services in Nigeria by 2016. However, Airtel has moved quickly. Active data subscribers have increased by 109.5% over the last three years. In its IPO prospectus last year, the company told investors it had 16.9 million active data subscribers in 2017. By March 2020, that figure doubled to 35.4 million.

Much of this growth in data subscribers and data revenue is coming from Nigeria. At 16.7 million, the West African country accounts for nearly half of Airtel’s data subscribers. Data revenue from Nigeria grew to $120 million by March 2020 up from $80 million in March 2019. Airtel plans to intensify this growth. Despite the pandemic and possible revenue challenges, it will spend between $650 million and $700 million annually developing its data infrastructure over the next 12 months.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Airtel Africa Is Prepared To List Today On The Nigerian Stock Exchange

July 9, 2019

Barring any last minute changes, Airtel Africa Plc is now set to list its shares on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange today, Tuesday 9th July 2019. The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has officially disclosed that the postponed Airtel Africa listing on its platform has been rescheduled for Tuesday, July 9th, 2019.

This Listing At A Glance

Ahead of its secondary listing on the NSE, Airtel Africa, at the weekend, unveiled plans to distribute 80 percent of its free cash flow as dividend to shareholders.
The telecom company had earlier announced the postponement of the much-expected shares listing slated for Friday, July 5, 2019.
It was expected to conduct cross-border secondary listing of 3,758,151,504 ordinary shares of Airtel Africa Plc on the NSE after its London Stock Exchange (LSE), primarily listing at an offer price of 80 pence per ordinary share.
A secondary listing is when securities, already listed on a primary exchange, are subsequently listed on other securities exchanges, with the Issuer not subjected to the full requirements applicable to listing on the other securities exchange(s) at which it seeks a secondary listing.
The telecoms giant said the postponed listing was to ensure that the company meets all the post NSE approval pre-requisites for listing on the exchange.

A Breakdown Of Facts

Airtel Africa is made up of Airtel Chad; Airtel DRC; Airtel Gabon; AirtelTigo Ghana; Airtel Kenya; Airtel Madagascar; Airtel Malawi; Airtel Niger; Airtel Nigeria; Airtel Congo; Airtel Rwanda; Airtel Seychelles; Airtel Tanzania; Airtel Uganda; Airtel Zambia);

The company had a net profit of $83mn in the fourth quarter of the 2018–19 year to March, driven by its Airtel Money platform, after a loss of $49mn in the year-earlier quarter.
Investors including Warburg Pincus, Temasek, Singtel, SoftBank and the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) have invested $1.45b in Airtel Africa through primary equity issuance, with the proceeds being used to reduce debt.
Indian broker Motilal Oswal, in research on May 7, forecast that the Airtel Africa’s mobile subscriptions will increase by 10.7% for the full year 2019–20, while wireless traffic minutes will show growth of 18%.
India’s Bharti Airtel established its presence in Africa by buying Kuwait-based Zain’s Africa operations for $10.7 billion in 2010. The company has grown to become Africa’s second-largest telecoms company, with over 94 million customers, and is in the top two carriers in most of the countries where it operates.
According to Ovum’s Africa Digital Outlook 2019, mobile revenue in Africa will increase from $54.9b in 2017 to $68b in 2022. Non-SMS mobile data revenue — from mobile broadband access and mobile digital services — is expected to more than double to $32.1bn over that period.
See Also: Preparing For July 4 Airtel IPO in Nigeria: Quick Facts You Need To Know

Points To Have In Mind When Investing In Stocks of Companies

Own at least 10–30 different stocks, preferably in different industries: Don’t put all your money in one company/mutual fund/industry and invest in a wide variety of them.
Invest in established leaders in the industry, preferably companies in the top 25% or 30%: Choose great and stable companies. Remember: We’re investing in businesses, not gambling on racehorses.
The Company you’re buying should have a Long, Unbroken Record of Dividend Payments: If a company gives good dividends to their stockholders, it means it has actual earnings to pay it.
Choose companies with a 7-year Price-to-Earnings (P/E) Ratio of Less than 25 (and less than 20 in the past 12 months): Choose good companies with a moderately low P/E Ratio (less than 25).

NB: These points were postulated by Benjamin Graham, author of the classic “The Intelligent Investor

Additionally,

Set a maximum limit of the amount you can invest in companies.
Invest in companies that are making profit or has all the metrics to make profit.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Airtel Africa Set To Offer $1bn Shares To The Public On The London Stock Exchange

May 12, 2019

Any time from June, Airtel Africa is going to the London Stock Exchange to list its shares for subscription. A total of $1bn worth of shares would be open for subscription. The IPO would be one of London’s biggest this year.

A Breakdown Of Facts

Airtel Africa is made up of Airtel Chad;Airtel DRC; Airtel Gabon; AirtelTigo Ghana; Airtel Kenya; Airtel Madagascar; Airtel Malawi; Airtel Niger; Airtel Nigeria; Airtel Congo; Airtel Rwanda; Airtel Seychelles; Airtel Tanzania; Airtel Uganda; Airtel Zambia);

The company had a net profit of $83mn in the fourth quarter of the 2018–19 year to March, driven by its Airtel Money platform, after a loss of $49mn in the year-earlier quarter.

Investors including Warburg Pincus, Temasek, Singtel, SoftBank and the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) have invested $1.45b in Airtel Africa through primary equity issuance, with the proceeds being used to reduce debt.

Indian broker Motilal Oswal, in research on May 7, forecast that the Airtel Africa’s mobile subscriptions will increase by 10.7% for the full year 2019–20, while wireless traffic minutes will show growth of 18%.

India’s Bharti Airtel established its presence in Africa by buying Kuwait-based Zain’s Africa operations for $10.7 billion in 2010. The company has grown to become Africa’s second-largest telecoms company, with over 94 million customers, and is in the top two carriers in most of the countries where it operates.

According to Ovum’s Africa Digital Outlook 2019, mobile revenue in Africa will increase from $54.9b in 2017 to $68b in 2022. Non-SMS mobile data revenue — from mobile broadband access and mobile digital services — is expected to more than double to $32.1bn over that period.

Going On IPO Despite Citron’s Claims Against Jumia

Although market appetite shown for Africa e-commerce company Jumia in its New York IPO in April may mean that the time is right, a report from Citron Research has, however, put a big stain on Jumia’s IPO filing. This is not however expected to affect Airtel’s credibility. Unlike Jumia, Airtel Africa is a profit-making company.

Related: Behold Jumia, The German Company That Became A Nigerian Fraud

‘‘In theory, the Jumia IPO should not affect demand for Airtel Africa shares because they have different business models,’’ argues Andrew Sekandi, an investment adviser at Alpha Sierra in London.
‘‘Airtel Africa, deserves to be judged on its own merits. But capital markets being what they are, Jumia’s success may draw in some retail investors and maybe even some institutions that would not previously have considered betting on an Africa-focused stock. Some investors will see the Jumia and Airtel IPOs as essentially a bet on the growth of African consumer markets and the middle class, so this could help Airtel,” Sekandi says.

‘‘Airtel Was Saved by Exapansion Into The African Market.’’

Image result for Airtel Africa revenue chart

Airtel was “Saved by Africa” in the face of falling profit margins in India, according to October 2018 research from Bond Critic published on Smart Karma. Bond Critic argued that Airtel’s expansion into Africa has been credit positive. Motilal Oswal, which rates Bharti Airtel, says the Africa business has been playing a key part in overall growth for the Indian company.

Strong momentum in Africa should continue on the back of potential to increase revenue share in some markets and growth in the use of Airtel Money, Motilal Oswal says.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh, a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organisations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.