By Nqobile Dludla
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South Africa’s biggest mobile operator Vodacom Group reported a rise of 11.4% in first-quarter service revenue on Wednesday compared to the same period last year, supported by growth in Egypt and group financial services.
Vodacom, majority-owned by Britain’s Vodafone, said group service revenue rose to 32.3 billion rand ($1.84 billion)in the three months to June 30.
On a normalised basis, group service revenue jumped 13.8%, tracking favourably against its medium-term target of double-digit growth, Vodacom said.
Service revenue in Egypt grew at 43.8% in local currency, making it a star performer. The South Africa market delivered a 3% increase, supported by contracts, while Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho contributed significantly to normalised growth of 12.4% in its international business.
Service revenue outside of mobile services, such as from fintech, was a key growth driver and contributed 6.9 billion rand in the quarter, equating to 21.4% of the group and was “well on track to reach our target contribution of 30% by 2030,” Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub said in a statement.
Group financial services revenue of 3.9 billion rand was supported by strong growth from the insurance business in South Africa, “excellent” growth in Egypt of 44.3%, and a 17.4% increase from the international business on the back of improved performance in Mozambique, Joosub said.
Including Kenya’s Safaricom, in which it owns a stake, Vodacom now processes $460 billion in mobile-wallet transaction value annually, he said.
($1 = 17.5463 rand)
(Reporting by Nqobile Dludla; Editing by Tom Hogue and Rachna Uppal)
