MTN Uganda reported a historic 2024 net profit of UGX641.5 billion (about $175 million) reflecting a strong financial performance and a year of consistent commercial momentum. This was contained in MTN Uganda’s 2024 Financial Year report released on Thursday.
The telecom operator has maintained its market leadership and grown its digital and fintech offerings under the leadership of CEO Sylvia Mulinge.
Due to the robust performance of its voice, data, and fintech services, MTN Uganda’s overall revenue increased by 18.9 percent to UGX3.17 trillion, with double-digit growth across all major business lines.
Service revenue, which makes up the majority of earnings, increased by 19.5 percent to UGX3.14 trillion, with voice revenue rising by 12.7 percent to UGX1.3 trillion and data revenue soaring by 30.5 percent to UGX811.8 billion.
Fintech revenue increased by 22.8 percent to UGX947.5 billion, supported by rising mobile money transaction volumes and a robust uptake of digital financial services.
“Our Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) increased by 20.7 percent to UGX1.7 trillion, with an improved margin of 52.2 percent, up 0.8 percentage points. Profit After Tax (PAT) surged by 30.1 percent to UGX641.5 billion, while earnings per share increased to UGX28.7, demonstrating strong value for investors,” stated Mulinge in a letter to shareholders accompanying the published results.
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MTN Uganda’s capital expenditure increased by 18.3% to UGX418 billion
MTN Uganda maintained its aggressive network expansion strategy, increasing capital expenditure (excluding leases) by 18.3 percent to UGX418 billion, allowing a significant expansion of 4G and 5G coverage throughout the nation.
“Our 4G and 5G population coverage increased to 87.9 percent and 15.3 percent, respectively, with growth in our 5G sites to 538, from just 37 in 2023. Notably, we were recognised at the 2024 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona for having the fastest network in Uganda and the fastest LTE network in Africa,” Mulinge highlighted.
Additionally, MTN doubled its fiber-to-the-home customer base in 2024 by expanding its residential internet services and expanding the fibre network coverage by 47.2 percent to 17,774 km.
MTN Uganda’s regulatory obstacles
MTN Uganda encountered regulatory obstacles in spite of its impressive financial accomplishments, such as a mandate from the Uganda Communications Commission to lower local mobile termination fees (MTR) by 44 percent to UGX26. Voice revenues in Q4 were hurt by this.
Furthermore, from 2018 to 2022, the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) conducted an investigative audit of the tax compliance of the telecom industry.
“MTN Uganda is cooperating fully with this process, providing comprehensive data and necessary clarifications in a timely and transparent manner,” Mulinge assured stakeholders.