MTN Nigeria said its financial technology revenue nearly doubled in the second quarter of 2025, driven by strong performance in airtime lending and growth in advanced services.
According to its unaudited financial results for the half year ended June 30, 2025, fintech revenue rose by 84.2 per cent to N47.1bn in Q2, up from N25.6bn in the same period last year. For the first six months, fintech revenue climbed 71.8 per cent to N83.2bn, compared to N48.4bn in the first half of 2024.
The telecoms giant attributed the growth to its airtime lending product, Xtratime, and an expanding suite of advanced services. It noted that improvements in its fintech ecosystem, supported by its partner network, helped attract more high-value users.
“This contributed to sustained growth in customer deposits, which increased by about five times compared to December 2024,” the company said in a statement on Monday.
Despite the revenue surge, MTN Nigeria reported a 6.1 per cent decline in its active wallet base to 2.7 million, compared to December 2024. However, it said the business saw signs of recovery in Q2, with approximately 562,000 new wallets added during the period.
The firm also recorded a 49.7 per cent increase in active agents and a 3.5 per cent rise in merchant numbers, reflecting its ongoing efforts to strengthen distribution and build a sustainable fintech operation.
MTN Nigeria is among the telecom operators making a strong push into the financial services space as part of efforts to diversify beyond voice and data.
“We are committed to executing our fintech growth strategy,” said the Chief Executive Officer, Karl Toriola. “After recalibrating our approach earlier this year, we are encouraged by the positive trends in Q2 and the renewed momentum across our ecosystem.”