Vodacom accelerates Pan-African growth with Safaricom, Maziv deals
- hello01715
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
Strong performance in Egypt, international markets, and financial services drives Vodacom Group’s quarter, as strategic acquisitions position the company for inclusive connectivity and fintech leadership across Africa.
By Nhlanhla Muthe, Senior Reporter
Vodacom Group has reported robust results for the quarter ended 31 December 2025, underpinned by strong performance in Egypt, international markets, and its financial services portfolio.
Shameel Joosub, Vodacom Group CEO, highlighted that the Pan African telco’s revenue grew 11.0% to R43.9 billion, while service revenue increased 12.7%, demonstrating the company’s resilience across a diverse African footprint.
“During the third quarter, Vodacom Group made significant strategic progress, marked by milestones that strengthen our long-term growth profile and accelerate inclusive connectivity across our footprint,” he said.
The quarter was anchored by two landmark deals. In Kenya, Vodacom announced the acquisition of an additional 20% stake in Safaricom, increasing its effective holding to 55%, a move valued at US$2.1 billion. “This transaction strengthens our pan-African fintech and connectivity leadership, unlocking opportunities to share best practice across Kenya, Ethiopia and our broader footprint,” Joosub explained. In South Africa, the company completed its acquisition of a strategic stake in fibre business Maziv, with regulatory approval allowing accelerated fibre deployment to historically underserved communities.
Vodacom’s financial services and mobile money platforms continue to drive growth. Group financial services revenue rose 24.7% to R4.5 billion, while mobile money platforms, including Safaricom, processed US$500.7 billion in transaction value over the past twelve months. “Including Safaricom, we passed the 100 million financial services customers mark during the quarter, illustrating our purpose-led impact on people and economies across our markets,” Joosub said.
Egypt emerged as a standout performer, with service revenue rising 39.0% to R9.5 billion, and financial services revenue up 59.4%, driven by Vodafone Cash adoption and 5G network expansion. Data traffic increased by 25.1%, with 33.9 million data customers, reflecting the company’s continued investment in connectivity and digital innovation.
In South Africa, service revenue grew 1.4%, supported by beyond mobile offerings, fixed connectivity, and IoT, while the international business saw service revenue growth of 12.6%, with normalised growth accelerating to 15.4%.
Looking ahead, Joosub affirmed Vodacom’s commitment to Vision 2030. “With a strong platform and clearer line of sight to strategic milestones, the Group is well positioned to capture structural growth while staying true to our purpose of connecting people to a better future,” he stated.
