Vodacom Group has reported a 1.6% increase in group revenue to R39.5 billion for the third quarter, despite facing currency headwinds due to a stronger rand. The telecom giant delivered a robust 11.6% growth in group service revenue on a normalised basis, surpassing its medium-term target.
Strong Performance Across Key Markets
In South Africa, service revenue growth improved to 3.2%, driven by a strong prepaid market and a 40.6% surge in data traffic. The country’s beyond mobile services—encompassing digital and financial services, fixed and IoT—contributed R2.8 billion to total revenue. Vodacom also invested R3.2 billion in network infrastructure during the quarter, reaffirming its commitment to enhancing customer experience.
Egypt continued to shine as a standout performer, delivering 44.3% service revenue growth in local currency, with financial services revenue skyrocketing by 77.7%. The country now accounts for 22.3% of Vodacom’s total revenue, boasting a 50.7 million customer base and experiencing a 25.6% increase in data traffic.
The international segment grew 1.4% (7.0% normalised), with strong performances in Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). However, Mozambique’s revenue was affected by post-election tensions since October 2024.
Financial Services and Mobile Money Expansion
Vodacom’s financial services business continues to be a key growth driver, with revenue rising 5.7% (17.2% normalised) to R3.6 billion. The company processed an impressive US$437.7 billion in mobile money transactions over the past 12 months, reinforcing its dominance as Africa’s largest mobile money platform by transaction value.
Across its markets, Vodacom serves over 210 million customers, with ambitious plans to connect 100 million more Africans to the digital economy. Ethiopia, which has seen a 63.6% increase in customers to 7.1 million, is expected to play a crucial role in this expansion.
Strategic Investments and Digital Inclusion Efforts
Vodacom has been making strides in digital and financial inclusion, launching M-Wekeza in Tanzania to facilitate investments, partnering with Orange in the DRC to enhance rural connectivity, and introducing a cloud-based handset in South Africa to make smartphones more accessible.
The company remains focused on expanding its beyond mobile services, which now contribute 21.4% of total service revenue, amounting to R6.6 billion for the quarter. It aims to increase this contribution to 25-30% in the medium term.
Mergers & Acquisitions and Looking Ahead
Vodacom has appealed the Competition Tribunal’s decision on its proposed joint control acquisition of South African fibre operator Maziv. The company maintains that the transaction would accelerate fibre expansion and bridge South Africa’s digital divide.
Despite economic and political challenges in some markets, Vodacom remains optimistic about its growth trajectory. Group CEO Shameel Joosub highlighted that
“the focused execution of our strategy has resulted in a resilient operational response, keeping us on track to meet our medium-term financial targets.”
Looking ahead, Vodacom aims to expand access to smartphones, financial services, healthcare, and education, while continuing to drive economic growth and digital inclusion across Africa.