Vodacom has announced that the group’s results for the quarter ended December 2022 were boosted by the acquisition of a 55% stake in Vodafone Egypt.
“The third quarter of our current financial year is the first set of results that includes revenues from what we expect will be a transformative transaction for the group – our acquisition of a 55% stake in Vodafone Egypt,” Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub said this week.
In December last year, Vodacom completed the R43.6-billion deal, the largest in its history. Following the transaction’s completion, Vodafone’s shareholding in the Vodacom group increased from 60.5% to 65.1%.
“We expect the acquisition will enhance our return and growth prospects, including our medium-term service revenue and earnings outlook,” Vodacom said.
Vodacom consolidated Vodafone Egypt into its results from December 8 2022. Vodafone Egypt contributed over R1.8-billion to group service revenues and was a key factor, alongside currency gains, in the 16% rise in Vodacom’s service revenue to R24-billion. Vodacom group revenue increased 15% to R30.7-billion during the December 2022 quarter due to the acquisition of Vodafone Egypt and the rand’s depreciation against international currencies.
Financial services are the fastest-growing contributor to the group’s new services. Vodacom’s financial services revenue grew by 30.6% to R2.6-billion, mainly on the back of demand for M-Pesa platform services across Vodacom’s international portfolio and double-digit growth in insurance policy and airtime advance sales in South Africa.
Vodacom’s international operations grew by 18% to R7-billion, which the group attributed to its focus on financial inclusion and accelerated capital expenditure. M-Pesa revenue increased by 34%, and data revenue grew by 33%. Over the last year, M-Pesa processed about R6.4-trillion worth of deals, an increase of 17%, and remains Africa’s largest mobile money platform by transaction value.
Vodacom is a minority investor in a Safaricom-led consortium that obtained a mobile telecom licence in Ethiopia. By mid-November, Safaricom Ethiopia had surpassed one million active customers. By December 31, the company had expanded its network coverage to 21 Ethiopian cities, and it is on track to reach 25 cities by April 2023.
In another development, Vodacom acquired telecommunications spectrum in Tanzania and Mozambique.
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