MTN Nigeria has posted a strong rebound in financial performance for the second quarter of 2025.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television on Monday, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Modupe Kadri credited the company’s recovery to a mix of government policy stability, regulatory reforms, and disciplined execution of its strategic priorities.
“The policies that have been introduced have brought some stability,” Kadri said. “The results you are seeing, not just from MTN but from most multinationals that are heavy on FX, have a lot to do with the forex stability driven by the CBN reforms. They’ve done a lot of interventions, and a lot of inflows are coming in now. Even the federal government has increased oil production, and for the first time in years, the forex reserves are great.”
According to the latest industry figures, Nigeria’s telecommunications sector now contributes over 14% to the nation’s GDP, with a market value estimated at $10.8 billion. Active mobile subscriptions stand at 169 million, internet subscriptions at 142.16 million, of which 141.66 million are mobile connections, alongside record broadband penetration.
Kadri noted that the recovery was not driven by tariff increases alone but by a series of decisive actions the company took following its extraordinary general meeting on April 30, 2024. “We highlighted five things we were going to do,” he said. “Part of it was the tariff review, which was successfully done. But we also reduced our forex exposure. Today, if you look at our balance sheet, you’ll find minimal forex exposure. We’ve paid off all our letters of credit and renegotiated the tower contracts that were causing the huge issues. We’ve also implemented other efficiency initiatives to improve our cost savings.”
The CFO emphasised that these measures have strengthened MTN Nigeria’s balance sheet and positioned the company for sustainable growth. “All these things, carefully executed, are what you are seeing reflected in the results,” he said.
Kadri also highlighted the link between a healthy telecoms sector and a healthy Nigerian economy. “The telco sector is a critical enabler in the economy,” he explained. “If the telco sector is healthy, then the Nigerian economy is likely to be healthy. It’s in our collective interest to ensure that the health of the industry remains in good standing.”
Looking ahead, Kadri expressed optimism about sustaining the momentum into the second half of the year. “The recovery started from Q3 of last year, even though at a slow rate. By Q3 2024, we returned to profitability per quarter, then improved in Q4, Q1, and Q2. The growth rate is there, and we are bold enough to say that we expect to be coming out of our negative equity situation in this quarter,” he said.
The CFO underscored the importance of policy stability to future performance. “As long as government policies remain stable, it allows us to plan properly,” he said. “When you import a lot of equipment for the industry, you need to plan your capex and estimate where exchange rates will be. Stability encourages us to make the investments needed to improve service quality and connectivity in Nigeria.”
With Nigeria’s telecoms sector riding high on increased data consumption, record broadband reach, and renewed investor confidence, MTN Nigeria’s latest results signal not only a company turnaround but also the resilience of an industry that has emerged stronger from recent economic headwinds.
