Airtel Africa says it is commencing the second tranche of its $100 million share buyback programme, with up to $55 million worth of ordinary shares expected to be repurchased and cancelled over the next six months.
The telecoms and mobile money company, which owns Airtel Nigeria, the nation’s number two telecoms company by subscriber base and trades on the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges, says the buyback aligns with a capital reduction strategy and runs from May 14 to no later than November 19, 2025.
The second tranche, Airtel Africa says in a statement seen by Technology Times, follows the completion of a $45 million first tranche concluded by April 24, 2025, under a mandate approved by shareholders at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) held July 3, 2024. The resolution authorises Airtel Africa to buy back up to 374,141,187 ordinary shares. As of this announcement, 302,588,310 ordinary shares remain under the buyback authority.
The second tranche, Airtel Africa says in a statement seen by Technology Times, follows the completion of a $45 million first tranche concluded by April 24, 2025, under a mandate approved by shareholders at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) held July 3, 2024. The resolution authorises Airtel Africa to buy back up to 374,141,187 ordinary shares. As of this announcement, 302,588,310 ordinary shares remain under the buyback authority.
Airtel Africa: All shares purchased under the buy-back programme will be cancelled
Airtel Africa appointed Barclays Capital Securities Limited to conduct the repurchase on its behalf. Barclays will act as a “riskless principal,” executing on-market purchases independently before selling the shares directly to Airtel Africa for cancellation.
The share buyback is being carried out “in accordance with certain pre-set parameters” agreed with Barclays, and complies with the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s Listing Rules, the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No 596/2014, and the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, according to the telecoms company.
“All shares purchased under the buy-back programme will be cancelled,” Airtel Africa says, confirming that the initiative is not intended for treasury stock or reissuance, but to reduce issued share capital.
Airtel Africa first disclosed the $100 million share buyback on December 23, 2024, noting that the move reflects the board’s confidence in the group’s growth trajectory, strong balance sheet, and sustained cash flows at the holding company level.
The share repurchase announcement comes shortly after Airtel Africa reported a post-tax profit of $328 million for its 2025 financial year, recovering from an $89 million loss recorded in the previous year. Total revenue declined marginally to $4.955 billion, compared to $4.979 billion, largely due to currency devaluations in Nigeria and other key markets. On a constant currency basis, revenue rises by 21.1%.
The group declared a final dividend of 3.9 cents per share, bringing total dividend payout for the year to 6.5 cents, representing a 9.2% increase from the previous year.
In its filing with the Nigerian Exchange, Airtel Africa says EBITDA stands at $2.304 billion, a 5.1% decline year-on-year, while EBITDA margin falls to 46.5% from 48.8%. The company attributes the decline to inflationary pressures, currency depreciation, and changes in taxation across its markets.
Airtel Africa, majority-owned by India’s Bharti Airtel, operates in 14 sub-Saharan African countries including Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. The group offers mobile voice, data, and digital financial services through its Airtel Money platform.
The company confirms the ongoing share buyback may continue during closed periods as defined under UK listing regulations. The programme is not expected to impact its operations or capital investment plans, which include spending between $725 million and $750 million in capital expenditure over the next fiscal year and preparations for a potential IPO of its mobile money business in the first half of 2026, the telecoms group says.
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