FY2025
performance
5
Telkom Consumer’s robust performance affirms the data-led growth strategy. We delivered market expansion, revenue diversification and strong customer loyalty, while strategic investments in digital innovation and network resilience drove sustained profitability.
Key strategic focus areas
Challenges
Strategic achievements
Mobile data
revenue
growth
Consumer
EBITDA growth
Mobile active
subscriber base
increase
Surge in mobile
data traffic
Fibre revenue
increase
Telkom Consumer's operating revenue increased by 5.6% to R27 804 million, driven by advanced data analytics, optimisation of the product portfolio and the expansion of our distribution channels. External revenue from the mobile business rose by 8.3% to R24 448 million, largely due to a 10.2% growth in mobile service revenue to R20 965 million.
Our fibre portfolio continued to perform well, in line with the data-led strategy. Fibre revenue surged by 15.5%, driven by a 3.4% increase in subscribers and a 12.4% uplift in fibre ARPU (including internet).
Beyond Connectivity revenue grew by 1.4%, reflecting our efforts to improve customer stickiness and increase our share of the wallet.
Our total mobile subscriber base grew by 13.4% to 23.2 million, yielding a blended ARPU of R78 (FY2024: R84). This was underpinned by strategic customer acquisition initiatives and sustained value extraction from our existing base.
In the post-paid segment, we maintained a stable subscriber base of 3.0 million with an ARPU of R186 (FY2024: R180), reflecting our ability to preserve high-value customers and enhance long-term revenue visibility.
In the pre-paid segment, subscribers increased by 15.4% to 20.2 million at an ARPU of R60 (FY2024: R65). The decrease in ARPU was attributable to non-metro regions that attract lower ARPU, but increased volumes. This underscores our effective market penetration, dynamic pricing and ability to maximise revenue per user while sustaining volume growth.
Despite a challenging operating environment, the mobile business delivered a robust 30.3% increase in EBITDA to R6 564 million, with an EBITDA margin of 26.7% (up 4.5 percentage points). This improvement was mainly due to increased service revenue and prudent cost management.
In FY2024, we implemented credit vetting measures of increasing credit scores and later re-vetting existing customers. Coupled with device management, this led to impairment of receivables declining by R205 million.
We continue to incur loadshedding-related costs, albeit to a lesser extent. The resumption of occasional loadshedding in the last quarter had a minimal impact on these costs.
Our ongoing commitment to cost discipline is underpinned by continuous refinement of operational efficiencies and strategic cost-optimisation initiatives.
At the broader Telkom Consumer level, EBITDA grew strongly by 36.0% to R5 567 million, with a 4.5 percentage point increase in the EBITDA margin to 20.0%.
Our mobile data subscriber base grew by 19.5% to 15.2 million and now comprises 65.7% of our total mobile subscriber base. This was fuelled by surging demand for seamless connectivity and value-optimised plans that resonate with our target market. Mobile data revenue increased by 12.3% to R16 065 million.
The year was transformative for our brand. We solidified our purpose-driven positioning and commitment to empowering customers through seamless connectivity. Our "Possible Begins Here" positioning strengthened brand equity and elevated customer loyalty. We were named Best Mobile Provider in South Africa by the 2024 Ask Afrika Orange Index®. Strategic collaborations drove a significant uplift in social media sentiment and reinforced our standing as the fastest-growing telecommunications provider.
We will continue this trajectory, redefining connectivity, fostering meaningful customer relationships and setting new benchmarks for service excellence.
Demand for data surged relentlessly, spurring a 24.1% increase in data traffic to 1 759 petabytes. We spent R2 792 million in capex on our mobile programme, primarily for capacity expansion given our subscriber growth. This investment facilitated an expansion of network coverage, which now encompasses 7 909 sites.
To alleviate pressure in high-demand areas, we advanced the deployment of multiple-input and multiple-output technology, scaling it to 722 sectors. A total of 1 757 sites are equipped with this technology.
We repurposed 122 sites from 3G to 4G through the reallocation of the 2 100 MHz spectrum. We also introduced 648 low-band sites to bridge coverage deficiencies, enhance indoor signal penetration and fortify 4G capacity.
We installed 2 481 lithium-ion batteries, mainly at high-revenue sites, to boost network resilience. We implemented “power and shelter solutions” at over 700 sites to enhance infrastructure security and mitigate risks of theft, vandalism and loadshedding.
Our voice over LTE traffic ratio increased from 57% to 65%, with independent evaluations confirming a marked improvement in voice quality. 5G device penetration surged by 22% to 1.3 million devices, underscoring the accelerating adoption of next-generation connectivity.
We reinforced our Beyond Connectivity strategy by expanding our value propositions, including:
Revenue from Beyond Connectivity contributed R1 685 million to overall growth. The airtime lending segment remained a significant revenue driver, accounting for 31.1% of total pre-paid recharges. Approximately 11.8 million unique customers utilised this service.
Our insurance portfolio grew steadily by 3.9%, generating R292 million in revenue. This growth was primarily due to stronger device insurance sales and improved policy management and retention. It was aided by investments in more advanced digital services and a content platform to support these services.
Mo’Nice continues to be a key growth driver in our pre-paid segment, driven by increased adoption of personalised offers. More than 5 million subscribers access personalised offers though the Mo’Nice platform across our digital channels.
Over the past three years, we have experienced significant growth in customer adoption, validating the success of our strategic approach. These outcomes highlight the strong return on investment from our digital transformation efforts. Our objective to shift customers from staff-assisted to self-service channels is progressing as planned.
We are confident in the robustness of our data-driven strategy and are well positioned to sustain growth and diversify revenue streams to Beyond Connectivity. Strategic investments in mobile and fibre technologies are set to accelerate the next phase of growth.
Our business is strategically positioned to enhance cash flows, support key initiatives and maintain a competitive edge. In line with our strategic goals, we will drive growth in the mobile broadband sector through leadership in fixed wireless access technology, while continuously optimising our product portfolio.