Airtel Africa has announced that Akhil Gupta, Non-Executive Director and Vice Chairman of Bharti Enterprises Ltd., is retiring from its board in July 2025, ending a 15-year tenure that has helped steer the telecoms operator’s expansion across the continent, including Nigeria, its largest market.
The announcement was disclosed on Tuesday via the Nigerian Exchange’s (NGX) portal under Directors’ Dealings, marking a significant leadership transition for the telecoms firm, which is operating in 14 African countries.
Gupta is stepping down at the conclusion of the company’s Annual General Meeting scheduled for July 2025, Airtel Africa says in the official statement. His departure is not linked to any regulatory or financial issues, with the company affirming that “there are no matters requiring disclosure under UKLR 6.4.6.”
Sunil Taldar, Airtel Africa CEO, attributes part of the recent growth to tariff adjustments approved by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in January, which is allowing increases of up to 50% for telecoms services. “Part of this acceleration in the last quarter has also been driven by the Nigerian tariff adjustments,” he says.
Airtel Africa ‘undergoing pivotal milestones’
Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chair of Airtel Africa, highlights Gupta’s role in overseeing the company’s pivotal milestones, including its acquisition of Zain Africa in 2010 and subsequent listing on the London Stock Exchange in 2019. “On behalf of the Board, I would like to express my gratitude to Akhil for his dedicated service and invaluable contributions to the Airtel Africa story,” Mittal says.
Airtel Africa is undergoing leadership transitions with Jaideep Paul, Chief Financial Officer, also retiring at the upcoming AGM. Paul is being succeeded by Kamal Dua, further reshaping the executive team as the company pursues its infrastructure investment strategy across the region.
The telecoms group is reporting $4.96 billion in revenue for the financial year ending March 31, 2025, growing 21.1% in constant currency. Reported revenue, however, is dipping slightly by 0.5% due to currency fluctuations. Nigeria, which accounts for the largest share of Airtel Africa’s operations, is experiencing a 30.3% drop in reported revenue but a 36.7% growth in constant currency following significant naira devaluation.
Sunil Taldar, Airtel Africa CEO, attributes part of the recent growth to tariff adjustments approved by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in January, which is allowing increases of up to 50% for telecoms services. “Part of this acceleration in the last quarter has also been driven by the Nigerian tariff adjustments,” he says in the earnings release.
Airtel Africa is expanding its infrastructure footprint, adding over 2,500 mobile sites and extending its fibre optic network by 3,300 kilometres. In Nigeria, the company is developing a 38MW data centre under its Nxtra brand to meet rising data demand and support digital transformation initiatives.
The customer base across Airtel Africa’s markets is rising by 8.7% to 166.1 million subscribers, with mobile money users increasing by 17.3% to 44.6 million. In Nigeria, smartphone penetration is nearing 50%, while average monthly data usage per customer is reaching 8.4 GB.
Airtel Africa, which is listed on both the London Stock Exchange and the Nigerian Exchange, is a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel and provides mobile voice, data, and financial services across key African markets, including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Zambia.
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