MTN Nigeria Communications increased infrastructure investment sharply in the first quarter of 2026, spending N390.3bn in capital expenditure excluding lease assets, as the telecommunications operator accelerated network expansion and capacity upgrades amid surging demand for data and digital financial services.
The company’s unaudited financial results for the quarter ended 31 March showed capex excluding right-of-use assets rose 92.8 per cent year-on-year from N202.4bn recorded in the same period of 2025.
Total capital expenditure climbed 10.6 per cent to N482.7bn during the quarter, while capex intensity excluding lease assets increased to 26 per cent from 19.1 per cent a year earlier, underlining MTN’s aggressive infrastructure push.
“To support this momentum, we invested N390.3bn in capex excluding leases, prioritising network capacity and quality of experience.
The more supportive FX backdrop enabled us to accelerate this investment while strengthening our ability to capture future revenue opportunities,” MTN Chief Executive Officer Karl Toriola stated in the report.
The increased spending came as the operator recorded strong growth across key business segments, particularly data and fintech services, helping lift quarterly profit after tax 165.9 per cent to N355.5bn from N133.7bn in the corresponding period last year.
Group revenue rose 41.6 per cent to N1.5tn, driven mainly by a 56.2 per cent jump in data revenue to N827.2b and a 77.9 per cent rise in fintech revenue to N64.2bn. Voice revenue also increased 22.5 per cent to N499.1bn.
The telecom operator’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose 68.1 per cent to N828.3bn, with EBITDA margin improving to 55.3 per cent from 46.6 per cent a year earlier.
The company continued to deepen its customer base during the quarter, with mobile subscribers increasing 6.5 per cent to 89.5m, while data subscribers rose 9.5 per cent to 55 million users.
MoMo wallet subscriptions climbed 54.6 per cent to 3.3 million, reflecting growing adoption of digital financial services.
The rise in infrastructure spending reflects MTN Nigeria’s strategy to strengthen network quality, expand broadband coverage and support rising data traffic as smartphone penetration and digital service adoption continue to grow across Nigeria.
The company’s free cash flow rose 55.6 per cent to N326.5bn during the period despite the elevated capital expenditure.
Operating expenses increased 16.1 per cent to N474.4bn, while cost of sales rose 25 per cent to N195.7bn.
MTN Nigeria’s profit before tax surged 169.6 per cent to N546.4bn, supported partly by lower net finance costs, which declined 38.7 per cent year-on-year to N85.9bn.
