{
  "id": 18503080,
  "title": "MTN Nigeria earns 2.5 times Airtel’s data revenue, but Airtel grows faster",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/mtn-nigeria-earns-2-5-times-airtels-data-revenue-but-airtel-grows",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-11-06T13:00:53.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Nairametrics",
    "slug": "nairametrics",
    "url": "https://nairametrics.com/2026/11/06/mtn-nigeria-earns-2-5-times-airtels-data-revenue-but-airtel-grows-faster/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Between April and September 2026, MTN Nigeria earned N1.86 trillion from data, which is about two and a half times the N739.84 billion generated by Airtel Nigeria's mobile-services business. However, Airtel Nigeria demonstrated faster growth in data revenue, with a 33.8% increase year-on-year in constant currency, compared to MTN Nigeria's 28.3% growth in naira, according to Nairametrics' analysis of the companies' latest financial filings.\n\nMTN Nigeria's financial year runs from January to December, while Airtel Africa's runs from April to March. To make a fair comparison, MTN's first-quarter results were subtracted from its nine-month figures to match Airtel's April–September period. Data accounted for 59.6% of MTN Nigeria's N3.12 trillion in revenue during the period, while it made up 54% of Airtel Nigeria's N1.37 trillion in mobile-services revenue.\n\nIn terms of average monthly revenue per user (ARPU), MTN Nigeria earned N5,150 from January to September, compared to Airtel Nigeria's N3,808 from April to September. Investors have two factors to consider when comparing the two companies: the value of MTN's lead in Nigeria and Airtel Africa's growth potential to justify its higher price.",
  "summary": "MTN Nigeria earned N1.86 trillion from data between April and September 2026, about two and a half times the N739.84 billion generated by Airtel’s Nigerian mobile-services business. The post MTN Nigeria earns 2.5 times Airtel’s data revenue, but Airtel grows faster appeared first on Nairametrics .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "BusinessDay Nigeria",
        "title": "Nigeria leads Africa in GDP value gains as currency stabilises, economy grows",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/nigeria-leads-africa-in-gdp-value-gains-as-currency-stabilises",
        "published": "2026-11-06T12:10:04.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}