Airtel records $549m foreign exchange loss on naira devaluation

Airtel Africa Plc recorded a loss after tax of $89 million for its full year ended March 2024 because of a $549 million foreign exchange loss caused by the devaluations of the naira in June 2024 and the Malawian kwacha in November 2023.

“Loss aftertax of $89m during the year ended 31 March 2024 was primarily impacted by the $549m net of tax impact of the exceptional derivative and foreign exchange losses,” it highlighted.

In its full year report released on Thursday, the telco said its reported Revenue declined by 5.3 percent to $4.98 billion primarily due to the naira’s devaluation.

It, however, noted that its revenue in constant currency grew by 20.9 percent with growth accelerating to 23.1 percent in its fourth quarter.

“Nigerian constant currency revenue growth accelerated to 34.2 percent in Q4’24 despite the challenging backdrop,” it said.