Safaricom’s Revenue Tops $3 Billion

Safaricom PLC has announced an 11.2 per cent growth in total revenue to $3 billion (KES 388.7 billion) for the financial year ending 31st March 2025, with net income also accelerating by 10.8 per cent to hit $540.6 million (KES 69.8 billion)

Following these results, Safaricom will pay out $372.3 million (KES 48.08 billion) in dividend to its shareholders for the year, adding a final dividend of 65 cents (KES) per ordinary share to the interim dividend of 55 cents per ordinary share already paid out.

The strong results were achieved through sustained innovation across Safaricom’s product portfolio, expansion into Ethiopia, and continued support to communities by investing more than $139.4 million (KES 18 billion) in Education, Health, Environment & Economic Empowerment initiatives over the last five years.

The reporting period also marked the end of Safaricom’s five-year strategy cycle, which saw the company transform from a telecommunication business to a Technology Company through accelerated technology adoption and greater focus on digitizing Kenya and Ethiopia.

“We have delivered excellent group performance with double digit growth on both top and bottom line. This strong set of results reflect the dedication of our teams, the loyalty of our customers, and the strength of our strategy,” said Peter Ndegwa, Safaricom PLC CEO.

The group Earnings Before Interest and Taxes also reported an impressive growth at 29.5 per cent to $806.2 million (KES 104.1 billion). Ethiopia contributed almost 10 per cent to the group’s revenue, with management noting that the business has moved past the peak investment phase and expected to turn to profitability by financial year 2027.

On the subscriber numbers, Safaricom Ethiopia has more than doubled the customer base to 8.8 million with over 3,141 sites in operation. A total of 2.8 million customers are actively using M-PESA services in Ethiopia, transacting over $159.4 million (KES 20.6 billion) over the year in review.

In Kenya, service revenue grew by 10.5 per cent to $2.8 billion (KES 364.3 billion). M-PESA, which turned 18 last year, delivered $1.2 billion (KES 161 billion), contributing 44.2 per cent of Kenya’s service revenue. The YoY growth of 15.2 per cent was driven by diversification beyond payments, with a growing focus on wealth management and credit solutions.

Kenya’s connectivity business also grew by 6.5 per cent to $1.4 billion (KES 185.2 billion), contributing 50.8 per cent of service revenue. This was driven by mobile data revenue which grew by 15.2 per cent to $564.6 million (KES 72.9 billion) as a result of increased 4G uptake, while voice revenue bucked global trends to grow by 1.6 percent to $625.7 million (KES 80.8 billion).

“This year’s results are more than a reflection of past performance; they are a foundation for our vision of becoming Africa’s leading purpose-led tech company by 2030. We are entering a new phase of growth, and we will continue harnessing innovation for social good and shaping the future of Kenya, Ethiopia and beyond,” Ndegwa noted.